The curtains are raised for the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. India confronts New Zealand in the grand finale of this tournament, which is to be held at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on March 9. Just prior to the carnival, the ICC came into the limelight, announcing the match officials to be appointed for the final.
It is worth noting that Paul Reiffel and Richard Illingworth will be the on-field umpires in the final. The third umpire will be Joel Wilson while the fourth umpire will be Kumar Dharmasena, together with Ranjan Madugalle as match referee.
Interestingly, Reiffel was one of the umpires in the semi-final between South Africa and New Zealand played in Lahore, while Illingworth officiated the first semi-final between India and Australia. With a highly experienced and professional array of match officials, the ICC appears to have left nothing to chance, with fans now gearing-up for the summit clash of this marquee event.
As for the match, interestingly, the Indian team will appear for the final in an unbeaten position. In fact, the Men in Blue have defeated the likes of Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand in the group stage of the tournament, and went on to put in a stellar performance in the 1st semi-final of the tournament against Australia, thus sealing their spot in the final.
On the other side, New Zealand came into the knockout stages after losing just one game in the group stage, and that one came against the Indian team too. However, the Black Caps managed to fashion a recovering act by beating South Africa in the knockout stages to get to the final, albeit after losing the last game.