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Steve Smith remains unclear on India having a possible advantage, having played all their games in Dubai and the knockout games also being held at the same venue.
Steve Smith is captaining Australia in the absence of Pat Cummins. (AP Photo)
Amidst the ongoing chatter regarding India having a possible advantage, playing all their games in Dubai for the ongoing Champions Trophy 2025, the Australian skipper remains unclear on whether it does give India the edge ahead of the semi-final clash, set to be played tomorrow.
“India obviously played all the games here. So they’ve seen what the pitch is doing. I don’t know if it is an advantage. Obviously, the whole square block is pretty dry. So, we’ve seen how the wickets are played,” Smith shared at the pre-match press conference.
The Aussie contingent made the trip to Dubai after their final group-stage fixture against Afghanistan, which was washed out, but were at risk of travelling back to Pakistan if India had gone on to lose the game against New Zealand.
Smith nonetheless saw it as a blessing in disguise.
“So, yeah, ideal to be here and have a couple of days’ preparation. I think, had we stayed and waited for last night’s result, we would have had to fly here today and play tomorrow, not get a chance to train on the surface, get used to the conditions that we have at the academy,” he added.
Smith admitted that the side was missing the presence of their star fast-bowling trifecta. Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood were ruled out of the tournament for several reasons, but their presence was certainly missed.
“Obviously, we’re missing some frontline bowlers that have done it for a long time. But we’ve got some guys here that have performed nicely. It’s good exposure for them to be able to play in an international tournament.
“And I think they’ve handled themselves well. So, yeah, hopefully another good performance from the guys tomorrow, and we can get into another final,” he added.
Smith will be banking on using his experience to lead a fairly younger squad to the Champions Trophy 2025 final. But India will come in with a point to prove against the Aussies after suffering defeat at the ODI World Cup final and most recently, the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.
- Location :
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE)
