IND vs NZ Champions Trophy Final | Gavaskar highlights India's shortcomings ahead of title bout

Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar says Rohit Sharma-led team has a lot of shortcomings heading into the Champions Trophy Final against New Zealand on Mar 9 in Dubai. Gavaskar, also warned that India should not tinker with their playing XI for the title showdown match.

"They haven't because when you look at the openers, they haven't really given the Indian team the kind of start that they had hoped for. That has not happened. So, clearly, I think there's a shortcoming over there. Even with the new ball, you might want to in the first 10 overs. You definitely want to take about 2 or 3 wickets. That's also not quite been happening. In the middle overs, we have not got wickets, even though the runs have not been flowing. So those are areas that you get better in those areas, the better the chances of going on and winning the final," said Gavaskar as quoted by news outlet India Today.

Also Read: 'Big matter for the country': Suryakumar backs Rohit Sharma after recent controversy on fitness and captaincy

Add WION as a Preferred Source

"I think it is going to be 4 spinners. It has to be. Why change now? It's shown Chakravarthy's inclusion, Kuldeep's inclusion has shown how effective they can be. And also, wicket-taking balls are the best dot balls in limited-overs cricket or any format of the game. So they've been doing that, so there should be no change at all," the former skipper added.

India and New Zealand will play in Champions Trophy Final for the second time in the history of the tournament. They had previously played each other in the 2000 Champions Trophy title showdown in Narobi, Kenya during which New Zealand emerged victorious - winning their first ever ICC title.

Ironically, New Zealand had beaten India for their maiden World Test Championship (WTC) Final in 2021 as well. India, riding high after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup, would be aiming at reversing the result this time around.