India won the highest-ever run chase against Australia in ICC knockouts, advancing to their fifth Champions Trophy final in Dubai on Tuesday. The team continued its faultless performance, delivering a triumph that the country could be proud of.

Virat Kohli was once again the star of the show, scoring 84 runs to lead his side to a four-wicket win. With this win, India became the first team to qualify for the Champions Trophy final for the third time in a row.

Despite losing to Australia in the finals of the 2023 ODI World Cup in Ahmedabad and the World Test Championships in 2022, Indian fans and retired cricketers alike celebrated the triumph and rushed to social media to congratulate the team.

Virat Kohli’s 84, combined with KL Rahul’s unbeaten 42 and Hardik Pandya’s 28-run cameo, enabled India win by four wickets over Australia in the first semifinal of the ICC Champions Trophy on Tuesday at the Dubai International Stadium.

“I do not know. That is up to you to break down. I’ve never focused on such things. When you don’t think about these milestones, they happen. If I reach the three-figure mark, that’s terrific, but the win is what matters. “Those things don’t matter to me anymore,” Virat Kohli remarked in the post-match interview.

India captain Rohit Sharma stated that his team was cool and composed in their chase of 265 points, which they handily achieved against Australia to go to the Champions Trophy final for the third time in a row.Rohit is pleased with his squad’ current form and is unconcerned about his opponents in the summit clash.

“I thought the bowlers did an excellent job; they worked hard throughout, and the spinners squeezed and took the game deep.””If we had scored 280, things would have been different,” Smith stated in the post-match presentation.

Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar praised India’s ‘clinical’ performance and wished the team success in the forthcoming final on March 9. “Clinical performance by Team India. @MdShami11 set the tone early, and our batters chased with patience. @imVkohli’s knock stood out. All the very best for the final,” posted Tendulkar.

“Finals, here we come! Bowlers did the job with @MdShami11 leading from the front & keeping the Aussies in check. Great partnership between @imVkohli and @ShreyasIyer15 handling the pressure and then @klrahul and @hardikpandya7 taking the game away in the end! One step away from glory – let’s get it, boys! #INDvsAUS #ChampionsTrophy # CT2025. Best wishes for the final,” said Yuvraj Singh.

“VIRAT win for #TeamIndia! Indian players consistently displayed talent and perseverance throughout the match. @imVkohli played another fabulous inning. @MdShami11 delivered the crucial wickets. And what a powerful innings by @klrahul and @hardikpandya7! Above all, a well-deserved victory in the semifinal against the mighty Australia,” read the post by former India spinner Harbhajan Singh.

“Well done to India on qualifying for the #ChampionsTrophy Final to be played on March 9 in Dubai. A great team performance against a quality opponent,” posted ICC Chairman Jay Shah.

“Sukoon. Thank you, Team India #IndvAus,” read the post by former India opener Aakash Chopra.

Brief scores:

Australia 264 all out in 49.3 overs (Steve Smith 73, Alex Carey 61; Ravindra Jadeja 2-40, Mohammed Shami 3-48, Varun Chakaravarthy 2-49) lost to India 267/6 in 48.1 overs (Virat Kohli 84, Shreyas Iyer 45; Nathan Ellis 2-49, Adam Zampa 2-60) by four wickets.

The Indian stock market‘s key indices, the Sensex and Nifty, opened lower on Tuesday, driven down by index heavyweight Reliance Industries and IT stocks.

“The current market climate is characterized by excessive pessimism and fear, which are frequently prelude to long-term bottoms. While a strong positive trigger has yet to surface (which is essential), historical patterns, technical indicators, and sectoral values all point to the market approaching a medium-term bottom,” the firm stated.

The brokerage business advises investors to allocate some long-term funds between 21700 and 22000. “While most of us cannot predict the exact top and bottom, sensible investing is about capitalizing on opportunities, especially when sentiment is so one-sided. “One such opportunity exists right now,” it stated.

“While most of us cannot predict the exact top and bottom, sensible investing is about capitalizing on opportunities, especially when sentiment is so one-sided. “One such opportunity is now,” the paper stated.

Sector valuations are lower than their one-year and five-year norms, indicating that long-term investors may find opportunities.

The Nifty 50 index has fallen by almost 16% from its peak of 26,277 in September 2024, marking the sixth-largest drop since the 2008-2009 Great Recession and the second-largest after the Covid-led slump in March 2020.

This five-month decline, which last occurred in November 1996, has aroused concerns about a possible bear market.

The Nifty has hit a significant support zone outlined by the 100-week Moving Average Envelope (+/- 3%), which has typically limited drops unless during extreme occurrences such as the Covid crisis. This implies that there is a solid foundation nearby.

“Historical patterns suggest that extreme breadth readings often precede market bottoms, but investors should wait for confirmation of a recovery before taking positions,” according to the research.

March has historically been a strong month for market recovery, with an average increase of 1.7% since 2009 (excluding the 2023 outlier fall). The Nifty has never seen six consecutive months of dropping prices, indicating a possible rebound.

“We are observing things that almost always occur close to a durable bottom – excessive pessimism, palpable fear, questioning the very rationale of investing in equities even for the long-term and a shift from upside excesses to the downside, not to mention social media memes,” a report from Axis Securities stated.

Varun Chakravarthy led India’s assault with a magnificent 5/42, the highest bowling stats in the competition, as India defeated New Zealand by 44 runs in the final Group A match on Sunday at the Dubai International Stadium.

With the win, India finishes first in Group A and will meet Australia in the first semi-final in Dubai on Tuesday, a rematch of the 2023 ODI World Cup final. New Zealand will face South Africa in the second semi-final on Wednesday at Gaddafi Stadium, with both sides flying to Lahore on Monday.

Following Shreyas Iyer’s 79, which helped India reach 249/9 in 50 overs, Chakaravarthy tricked the Blackcaps batters with his pace and variety, finishing with 5-42 in his 10 overs on Champions Trophy debut and bowling them out for 205 in 45.3.

Kane Williamson led the way for New Zealand with 81 off 120 balls on a tough field, relying on nudges, glances, and inside-out drives for boundaries. However, the Indian spin foursome applied the squeeze in the middle overs and took nine wickets, resulting in a win for the Rohit Sharma Team.

India could have taken their first wicket in the fourth over if Chakaravarthy hadn’t dropped Will Young’s catch at mid-on off Hardik Pandya’s bowling, resulting in the fielder booting the ball off his boot for four. But four balls later, Pandya gave the early breakthrough when Rachin Ravindra upper-cut to deep third, where he made a low diving catch.

Though Young and Williamson hit some tight boundaries, India did not let them off the hook, as New Zealand scored 44/1 on the first power play. Varun Chakaravarthy, who got enough turn in his opening over, took a wicket when Young inside-edged a googly into his stumps.

With India’s spinners getting plenty of turn, Williamson, given a life on 32 by Chakaravarthy, and Mitchell were prepared to wait while sometimes hitting boundaries in their 44-run third-wicket stand. But Kuldeep Yadav ended the partnership with a googly that spun past the inside edge and trapped Mitchell lbw for 17.

Williamson danced down the pitch to knock Axar over mid-on, but missed the delivery and was easily stumped by Rahul for a tough 81 off 120 balls, sealing the game’s outcome. Mitchell Santner hit some late boundaries in scoring 28 off 31 balls before his off-stump was uprooted by Chakaravarthy, who took five wickets in only his second ODI game.

Hardik stayed tall and fired a forehand-like shot for four off Henry, who subsequently had Jadeja slice to backward point and make a one-handed diving catch. New Zealand’s lengths were dead on, and they kept Hardik quiet until the all-rounder cut loose in the 49th over.

Brief Scores:
India 249/9 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 79, Hardik Pandya 45; Matt Henry 5-42) beat
New Zealand 205 in 45.3 overs (Kane Williamson 81, Mitchell Santner 28; Varun Chakaravarthy 5-42, Kuldeep Yadav 2-56) by 44 runs

The Rajya Sabha MP praised the action and expressed hope that similar facilities will be given to other airports in the country. The AAP Rajya Sabha member turned to social media to share photos of the highly subsidised canteen that has opened at Chennai International Airport, expressing his delight at the action.

Parliamentarian Raghav Chadha hailed the opening of cheap canteen facilities at airports, the most recent of which was inaugurated at Chennai airport, and congratulated all those who helped to bringing about a “paradigm change” in how airports serve to ordinary folks.

“The government has finally heard the voice of the average man. While the project begins at Kolkata Airport, I hope it expands to include all airports across the country. This will ensure that flying travelers do not have to pay Rs 100-250 for essential commodities such as water, tea, or coffee,” Chadha explained.

He underlined that economical airport amenities are critical to the general public’s convenience.

Raghav Chadha raised the topic in Parliament during the Winter session, drawing members’ attention to the excessive prices of water, tea, and snacks at airports, as well as their negative impact on the common man.

In his statement, the RS MP underlined travelers’ misery and stated how they were compelled to pay exorbitant costs for food and beverages at airports.

“A water bottle costs Rs 100, and tea is priced between Rs 200 and 250. Can’t the government set up inexpensive canteens at airports? He had questioned. He also condemned bad airport management, comparing it to bus stops owing to long lines, overcrowding, and disarray.

“Glad to see affordable food canteens being set up at Airports. Grateful to everyone who supported my demand for affordable food and drinks at airports. Congratulations to each one of you – every drop together makes the ocean rise,” he wrote in a post on social media platform X.

The cafe debuted at Chennai airport’s T1 domestic terminal, providing clean and affordable refreshments. The water bottle costs Rs 10; tea costs Rs 10; coffee costs Rs 20, and samosas and sweets cost Rs 20 each.

Notably, on December 19, last year, the first Udaan Yatri Cafe opened at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, commemorating the airport’s 100th anniversary.

Chadha raised the problem of pricey food stalls at airports, claiming that such outlets were making it difficult for air travelers, and presented a strong case in the Rajya Sabha for lowering the inflated rates.