This season in 2025 will be the 9th edition of the Champions Trophy, a 50-over tournament that was dismissed in 2016, following the last season in 2017. The ICC desired to have only one recognized competition in every format, and it was then they came up with the idea of the World Test Championship inaugurated in 2019.
The history of the Champions Trophy has enlisted several winners from the beginning, with South Africa emerging as the winners in the first season in 1998. Next, it was the turn of the Blackcaps, as the two teams who had never won a World Cup were the winners of the iconic Champions Trophy.
India and Australia remain the two most successful teams in the tournament with two titles, while Pakistan are the defending champion with the last title won in 2017.
This time around Pakistan has turned hosts for their first-ever Champions Trophy, though the ICC was repeatedly under pressure from cricket organizations like the BCCI and also ECB as well as Cricket Australia to relocate the tournament, though the ICC have made their intentions clear of holding the tournament in the nation from the 19th of February to the 9th of March.
A total of 8 teams that remained in the top 8 in the World Cup points table in 2023 have qualified for the Champions Trophy. Of which underdogs, Afghanistan has toppled Sri Lanka to emerge as a major opponent and enter their first-ever Champions Trophy tournament.
Before the competition, all teams are in a hunt to improve their standards of the game in the longer format of limited-overs cricket, though this turns very vital to keep an eye on the most significant teams who can be real contenders for the Champions Trophy 2025.
New Zealand – Most successful Overseas team in the Sub-continent
The semi-finalists from the Cricket World Cup 2023 have made it to the Champions Trophy, though they have not been one of the finest performers lately in the tournament. Yet New Zealand’s stunning form in the format is what has made them appear on this list.
The Kiwis seemed a brute force until they met the Indians in the semis, where they fell short despite Williamson and Mitchell’s stunning innings. However, playing under sub-continent conditions, there has never been a team other than New Zealand this successful in ICC tournaments; it’s due to their players often playing efficiently against spin bowling.
Australia – Defending Champions of the World Cup
The Aussies will be special contenders for the Champions Trophy, as they are the defending champions of the World Cup won in India last year. Aussie skipper Pat Cummins would level his antics as a captain with the likes of the great Ricky Ponting if he could take his team to a Champions Trophy triumph.
The red-hot form of opener Travis Head has been an asset to the Aussies, while Mitchell Marsh also starred with the bat last time the team played under sub-continent conditions. Especially in tracks like Lahore and Karachi, the pace is often favoured, and with the trio of Cummins-Starc-Hazelwood alongside the two giant all-rounders in Green and Stoinis, Australia can be the most dependable side in the competition.
India – No.1 ranked ICC ODI Team
India has emerged as the best ODI team in the last few years and has almost been invincible in the format except for their final loss at the CWC 2023. The most formidable batting lineup comprised skipper Sharma, who has been in the form of his life, alongside veteran Kohli, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and many such players in form.
Also, they comprise the finest bowlers, with two world-class pacers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami, and a bunch of quality spinners. However, the BCCI has not confirmed India’s participation in the Champions Trophy since the competition is to be held in Pakistan and the two nations are often under political unrest between themselves.
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