A major point of discussion during the Champions Trophy 2025 has been whether Team India gained an advantage by playing all their matches in Dubai. India opted to play all their games at a neutral venue after deciding not to travel to Pakistan for the tournament, leading several experts to argue that this gave them an unfair edge. However, Pakistan legend Wasim Akram has stated that it wouldn’t have made a difference even if India had traveled to Pakistan for the competition.
“This Indian team would have won it anywhere in the world,” Akram said during an appearance on the Dressing Room show on the Sports Central channel.
“Yes, there was a lot of talk once it was decided that India would play all their matches in Dubai. But had they played in Pakistan, they would have won there as well,” Akram added.
Akram highlighted that India won both the T20 World Cup 2024 and the Champions Trophy 2025 without losing a single game, which shows they were well-prepared to win the tournament regardless of the location.
“They won the 2024 T20 World Cup without losing a game, and they went on to win the Champions Trophy without losing a single game. This reflects the depth in their cricket and their leadership,” Akram said.
The Champions Trophy 2025 victory comes after India endured humiliating Test defeats both at home (0-3 against New Zealand) and away (1-3 against Australia). Despite intense scrutiny, Team India stuck with the combination of Rohit Sharma as captain and Gautam Gambhir as head coach.
Akram praised India for making the “sensible” decision, saying it ultimately led to their success.
“If you recall, they lost 3-0 to New Zealand in the Test series at home, lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and also lost the series in Sri Lanka. There was pressure to change the captain and the coach, but sanity prevailed. The BCCI backed them, saying ‘this is our captain, this is our coach,’ and now they are the champions of champions,” Akram explained.
Team India has now won eight ODIs in a row. Starting with a 3-0 series win against England, they carried that form into the Champions Trophy, defeating Bangladesh, Pakistan, Australia, and New Zealand twice on their way to the title.
India’s next international assignment will be in June, following IPL 2025, when they take on England in a five-match Test series in England.
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