Ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy final against India, New Zealand opener Will Young has said his team is not deterred by the defeat they suffered against the Men in Blue earlier in the ongoing tournament.

New Zealand’s winning start in the tournament came to an end with a 44-run loss against India in their final group game. While New Zealand gave India a run for their money, they were eventually outplayed as the Rohit Sharma-led side won the game comfortably in the end.

New Zealand, however, quickly bounced back in style with a thumping win over South Africa in the semifinal. Even though the Black Caps returned to winning ways, they will start the final against India as underdogs because of the defeat they suffered in the group stage.

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However, Will Young is not bothered about the defeat and is instead focusing on the positives from the game. Speaking ahead of the title-decider, the right-handed batsman said that his teammates can take plenty from the game and it would help them in making their strategy for the final.

“There is plenty we can take from that (group match defeat to India) in a scouting point of view, especially in my eyes as a batter, but I am sure the bowlers got a good look at their (India) batters as well and how they are likely to approach things,” Will Young told ICC.

“It was a great opportunity to see the style of cricket they will bring, especially at that venue and in those conditions,” he added.

Will Young further said that past games won’t have too much impact on the final and the team that will display better cricket would have the advantage in the final.

“There’s been some great battles over India in recent history including the World Test Championship and the 2023 World Cup semi-final. We’ve had some great games against India. But to be honest, it is who will show up on the day, you can’t be too stuck in the past.

“We’ll look to be able to adjust and adapt to whatever challenges are in front of us on Sunday and hope the game we’ve got and the nerve that we hold will be enough,” said Will Young.

Will Young recalls Nairobi triumph:

Ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy final, Will Young recalled New Zealand’s only Champions Trophy title that they won way back in 2000. The Black Caps had defeated India by 4 wickets in the final in Nairobi to clinch the title.

New Zealand have not won any ICC trophy in limited-overs format since then. Recalling the historic triumph, Will Young said that he is hopeful of emulating the triumph.

“There were some iconic names in that squad and those are the ones plenty of guys in this squad looked up to back in the day.

“It is cool to be trying to achieve the same thing 25 years later. I was eight years old at the time and just starting to fall in love with the game. I am well aware of New Zealand’s exploits in that tournament and it was fantastic to see them win.

“I’m thinking back to before we boarded the plane to come over here, we had an unveiling of the Champions Trophy squad. Scott Styris was there that day and told a few stories about the team and their exploits in that tournament.

“It was cool to recognise the past and that New Zealand has done this before. It is just about passing the baton and hopefully we can emulate them in a couple of days,” he added.

Meanwhile, India are looking to create history by becoming the first-ever team to win the Champions Trophy thrice. With form on their side, the Men in Blue will be eyeing another win over New Zealand.