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New Zealand's rising batting sensation Rachin Ravindra claimed the Golden Bat for most runs and 'Player of the Tournament' for his scintillating performances in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Rachin continued his ascent in world cricket, after a bumper ICC Cricket World Cup in India in 2023, he delivered in yet another ICC tournament, making a case for himself as a future leader amongst batters. In four matches, Rachin made 263 runs in four matches at an average of 65.75, with a strike rate of 106.47, with two centuries; against Bangladesh in the league stage and South Africa in the semifinal. He also picked up three crucial wickets across these matches. In the final, he made a quickfire 37 in 29 balls, with four boundaries and a six that gave his team a fine start. Shreyas Iyer was India's top run-getter and overall second-highest run-getter, with 243 runs at an average of 48.60, with a strike rate of 79.41 and two half-centuries. His best score is 79 against New Zealand in the group stages. In the final, he scored a useful 48 runs and shared a 61-run stand with Axar Patel. England's Ben Duckett was the third-highest run-getter, with 227 runs in three matches at an average of 75.66, with a century and best score of 165 against arch-rivals Australia. England's Joe Root emerged as the fourth-run-getter, with 225 runs in three matches at an average of 75.00, with a century and fifty. His best score is 120 against Afghanistan in losing cause. Virat Kohli emerged as the fifth-highest run-getter, with 218 runs at an average of 54.50, with a century and fifty. His best score was 100* against Pakistan, while his knock of 84 against Australia in the semifinals was also a memorable inning. New Zealand won the toss and opted to bat first. Kiwis got off to a fine start with a 57-run stand between Will Young (15) and Rachin Ravindra (37 in 29 balls, with four boundaries and a six). However, Kuldeep Yadav (2/40) applied some breaks and reduced NZ to 75/3. A 57-run stand between Daryl Mitchell (63 in 101 balls, with three fours) and Michael Bracewell pushed Kiwis towards 150-plus runs. Bracewell played a fine hand of 53* in 40 balls, with three fours and two sixes, taking NZ to 251/7 in their 50 overs. Kuldeep (2/40) and Varun Chakravarthy (2/45) were the top wicket-takers for India. Mohammed Shami also took a wicket, but conceded 74 runs in his nine overs. During the run-chase, India had a fine 105-run stand to start off things, between skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill (31 in 50 balls, with a six). While Gill, Virat and eventually Rohit (76 in 83 balls, with seven fours and three sixes) lost their wickets quickly, leaving India at 122/3, Shreyas Iyer (48 in 62 balls, with two fours and two sixes) and Axar Patel (29 in 40 balls, with a four and six) stitched a 61-run stand. After India lost Axar following crossing of 200-run mark, KL Rahul (34* in 33 balls, with a four and a six) and Hardik Pandya (18) did their job of taking India to the finishing line with six wickets and an over left. Michael Bracewell (2/28) and Mitchell Santner (2/46) were the top wicket-takers for NZ. Rohit won the 'Player of the Match' award for his captain's knock of 76 runs. (ANI)
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