Rohit Sharma, left, speaks to Australia’s captain Steve Smith at the toss ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy semifinal cricket match between India and Australia. (AP Photo)
IND vs AUS Champions Trophy 2025: It’s now become a norm as India captain Rohit Sharma lost yet another toss ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy semifinal against Australia in Dubai. Rohit has lost an 11th straight toss in ODIs, while India’s record extended to 14 as Steve Smith called right in Dubai and opted to bat first.
The last time India won a toss in men’s ODI was in the semifinal of the 2023 World Cup against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The toss-loss streak of 14 is already the longest in this format, with the second worst streak among teams belonging to the Netherlands at 11. Rohit, with his 11th straight toss loss, is now joint second most with Peter Borren. Former West Indies captain Brian Lara had lost toss in 12 consecutive games
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Rohit, perhaps with a hint of resignation, said: “I was prepared to do both. The wickets at this venue have played differently over the last three matches. So, when you are in two minds it is better to lose the toss.” Against New Zealand on Sunday, he said he would have preferred to bat first anyway.
Australia made two changes from their previous combination in the washed out match against Afghanistan, bringing in Cooper Connolly for injured Matthews Short and Tanveer Sangha for Spencer Johnson. India fielded the same playing XI of their previous match, with Varun Chakravarthy retaining his spot over Harshit Rana. On a dry pitch, both teams opted to pack. their teams with spin bowling options.
India XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy.
Australia XI: Steven Smith (c), Cooper Connolly, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Alex Carey, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Tanveer Sangha.
