A former Pakistan star has taken a swipe at India following their Champions Trophy victory.
India beat New Zealand by six wickets in Sunday’s final to win the Champions Trophy for a second time.
The spin quartet of Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel took combined figures of 5-144 in 38 overs, helping restrict New Zealand to 251-7.
New Zealand looked on course for an even smaller total but Michael Bracewell gave the innings some much-needed impetus with an unbeaten 53 from 40 balls.
India openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill then put on 105 for the first-wicket partnership before losing three wickets for 17 runs in the space of seven overs.
The chase always looked relatively comfortable, however, and India knocked off the winning runs with six wickets and six balls to spare.
India have now won both the T20 World Cup and the Champions Trophy since being beaten in the final of the 2023 World Cup.
While they are undoubtedly the best white-ball team in the world, India have faced accusations of bias during the Champions Trophy.
The geo-political situation with arch-rivals Pakistan meant India played all five of their games in Dubai, on the same familiar surface, and had no travelling to contend with.
In a somewhat farcical situation, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa all travelled from Pakistan to Dubai for a potential semi-final with India before two teams flew back when the semi-final line-up was confirmed.
Former Pakistan bowler Junaid Khan highlighted the lack of consistency in a post on X and wrote: ‘Some teams win by skill, some win by scheduling.’
Another ex-Pakistan star, legendary quick Shoaib Akhtar, was more complimentary to India, saying: ‘The best team to emerge in ICC tournaments in the last 10 years is India.
‘They won last year and have won again. I think it goes to show the quality of cricket they are playing. Congratulations to India. Thoroughly deserved.’
India skipper Rohit was full of praise for his team after they lifted the Champions Trophy and said the ‘magnificent’ Dubai crowd made it feel like a ‘home ground’.
‘We’ve played some really good cricket throughout the tournament,’ he said. ‘To come out here and win it is great.
‘The crowd has been magnificent. It’s not our home ground but they’ve made it our home ground.’
Superstar batter Virat Kohli, who missed out in the final, added: ‘It’s an amazing feeling, lovely to be playing with such amazing youngsters.
‘So much talent in the dressing room and they’re taking Indian cricket forward in the right direction.
‘These guys are stepping up in a massive way and that’s why we’re such a strong team.’
New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner, meanwhile, said the ‘better team’ won after his side fell short in the final.
‘It’s been a good tournament overall,’ he said. ‘We faced some challenges along the way but we’ve grown as a group.
‘We played some good cricket but we fell short to a better team. Credit to how they played, they’re world class spin bowlers.
‘We were probably about 20 runs under what we wanted but we just went out looking to restrict them.’
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