WATCH: Former Australia skipper predicts India as winners of ICC Champions Trophy 2025

The top eight ODI teams in cricket are all set to be a part of the highly awaited ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which will kick off today with the campaign opener between Pakistan and New Zealand at the National Stadium in Karachi. It will be the first ICC tournament since last year’s T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies.

Meanwhile, the former Australia skipper Michael Clarke has made bold predictions about the performance of all the eight participating teams in the Champions Trophy 2025. During a podcast, Clarke was asked to rank all eight teams from eight to top, in which he ranked Team India at the top and predicted the Men in Blue to win the prestigious cricket quadrennial.

“I think they’re the best one-day team” – Michael Clarke

The Aussie skipper kept his home team Australia in the second spot, just a spot below his predicted champions India. It also transliterates into the fact that Clarke has predicted the tournament’s final between India and Australia.

“Bangladesh eight, Afghanistan seven, England six, South Africa five, New Zealand four, Pakistan three, Australia two, and I’m going to India win the Champions Trophy,” said Michael Clarke to Beyond 23 Podcast during an exclusive conversation.

“I don’t want it to come out of my mouth, I want Australia to win but I think India’s squad, even if they don’t have Bumrah, is strongest. They have got so much power with the bat, the advantage of playing every game in Dubai and I think they’re the best one-day team in the world at the moment,” he added later.

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Notably, Rohit Sharma’s men will start their journey in the tournament with their campaign opener against Bangladesh on February 20 at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on February 20, at 2:30 PM (IST). Following this, they will lock horns with the arch-rivals Pakistan in the high-octane clash on February 23 in Dubai.