India's Surprise: Virat Kohli Arrives Early as Team Maintains Secrecy, ICC and Media Caught Off Guard Ahead of Pakistan Champions Trophy Clash

Despite both teams downplaying the significance of the match, the players representing India and Pakistan understand the immense pressure and expectations placed on them by millions of fans. In an effort to gain an advantage over Pakistan in the crucial semifinal match of the 2025 Champions Trophy, India secretly organized a training session at the ICC Academy in Dubai. This clandestine move caught even the ICC off guard, highlighting the intense competition and determination within the teams.

According to a report in Dainik Jagran, the Indian team scheduled practice for 4 p.m. on Saturday, but Virat Kohli, accompanied by his assistants, arrived five and a half hours before. The rest of the Indian team arrived at 11 a.m. During ICC tournaments, the media of both countries, domestic and international broadcasters, are given information on the pre-match practices, but none were aware of India's act, added the report. By the time the media reached the venue, India was halfway through their session. An ICC representative told the newspaper they could not forward information on India's practice as they were unaware.

The report added that Indian team management told the national daily that if the players practice late in the day before the match, it gets late by the time they wrap up their session and reach the hotel for dinner, leaving the players with less time to rest. Hence, they decided to start their practice session early.

India a win away from semifinal

India made a winning start to their Champions Trophy campaign. Riding on a five-wicket haul from Mohammed Shami and a century from Shubman Gill on a tricky Dubai track, India beat Bangladesh by six wickets in their opener on Thursday. The result left them a win away from returning to the ICC tournament's semifinal.

Pakistan, on the other hand, lost to New Zealand by 60 runs in their opener in Karachi on Wednesday amid losing premier batter Fakhar Zaman to an injury. They will be virtually eliminated from the tournament if they lose on Sunday.

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