A high-scoring second semi-final comes to an end with New Zealand thrashing South Africa to book the second spot in the finale. It will be another India-New Zealand clash in Dubai on Sunday.
That will be all from our coverage tonight, thank you for joining us throughout the day. Ninaad Dixithere signing off on behalf of my co-commentators AkshayaKrishna Polya,Ajay Pal Singh & Akshay Bhide alongside scorers/analysts Raju Khariya and Paras Yadav and statistician Aman. Stay glued for more cricketing action from around the world.
Most Successive ODI wins for a Touring Party in Pakistan:
7 - India (February 2006 to June 2008)
7 - New Zealand (May 2023 to March 2025)*
6 - Sri Lanka (October 1995 to November 1997)
Most defeats in ICC ODI events semi-finals:
9 - South Africa*
8 - New Zealand
Most Champions Trophy Final Appearances: 5 - India*
3 - West Indies
3 - New Zealand*
South Africa's performances in ICC ODI events semi-finals:
Played: 11
Won: 1
Lost: 9
Tied: 1
Highest combined totals in a Champions Trophy match
707 - Australia vs England in Lahore, 2025
674 - New Zealand vs South Africa in Lahore, 2025 (TONIGHT)
643 - India vs Sri Lanka at The Oval in London, 2017
642 - Afghanistan vs England in Lahore, 2025
636 - India vs South Africa, Cardiff, 2013
Mitchell Santner (New Zealand Captain): "Yeah, obviously it is a cool feeling to make it into the final. We were challenged tonight by a good team.
We already had a game in Dubai with India. Looking forward to getting there again. We know a bit about the conditions now and hopefully, we get the job done.
The platform was set, I think, by the batters. It was holding up a bit but Rachin and Kane played well. They set the stage for the rest of the guys, who just put the icing on the cake. The finishers did their job.
(On his performance) Yeah, it was good. What we speak as a group is to apply the pressure but still keep chipping in with the wickets. We took wickets in the middle overs and made it tough for the opposition.
Michael Bracewell had a game with four wickets. It was pleasing to pick up three wickets. Three very good scalps. It makes my job easier.
We have four, kind of all-rounders, who can bowl spin. They can bat anywhere and contribute. GP's two wickets and Rachin's five overs were great. We weren't sure if Henry, who has sore right shoulder but fine, would bowl. Looks okay, not sure. We have to wait for a couple of days and see.
We knew that they would hit hard lengths and it would spin or seam a bit.
Williamson keeps doing it. That partnership was massive involving Williamson and Rachin. They might have been frustrated a touch at times, but they flipped the switch earlier and got us to 360. Looking back, 320 might not have been enough.
Being there in Dubai and putting India under pressure would definitely give us confidence. You take in what things work and what doesn't. Not winning the toss might be nice in the final."
Temba Bavuma (South Africa Captain): "Look, I do think it was above par. As well as they batted, we felt anything not more than 350, we backed ourselves to chase. From batting point of view, we didn't get the partnerships. There were just two partnerships. You needed either myself of Rassie to go all the way. 360 was always going to be tough. We wanted someone to play well. David did that but we needed someone else as well.
The way they were able to pierce the gaps and score boundaries. They put us under pressure. We pride ourselves to take wickets in the middle overs but that didn't happen today.
Credit to Rachin and Williamson and the guys that come after them. They were too good today. 125/1 myself and Rassie still batting, we wanted to go till the 30th over. We know how destructive our middle order can be when they are coming in the last 20 overs but we failed to lay the foundation for them. We left too much for the middle-order to do in the end. My dismissal was a soft one. Rassie got a good ball.
It is about taking our chances in those moments. We need to be ruthless and take care of those key moments in the game."
Fastest Centuries (by balls faced) in the ICC Champions Trophy
67 - David Miller (South Africa) v New Zealand, Lahore, 2025 (TONIGHT)
77 - Virender Sehwag (India) v England, Colombo, 2002
77 - Josh Inglis (Australia) v England, Lahore, 2025
80 - Shikhar Dhawan (India) v South Africa, Cardiff, 2013
87 - Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka) v South Africa, Centurion, 2009