It's back to Pakistan for Proteas for Champions Trophy semi-final after India thump New Zealand

After landing in Dubai on Sunday, the Proteas will travel back to Pakistan for their Champions Trophy semi-final.

The South Africans will face New Zealand in Lahore on Wednesday in the second semi-final after the Black Caps were beaten by India by 44 runs on Sunday. India, on the other hand, will take on Australia in the first semi-final on Tuesday.

The Proteas progressed from Group B after beating England in their final Group B match to qualify for the final four alongside Australia.

Despite the tournament being hosted in Pakistan, one of the semi-finals was always going to be played in Dubai to accommodate India, who are playing all their matches in the United Arab Emirates because of their diplomatic beef with Pakistan.

Because of time and flight constraints, both the Proteas and Australia flew out to Dubai in case one of them ends up in a semi against India on Tuesday. Australia will now stay put in Dubai, while the Proteas will return to Pakistan on Monday to prepare for their semi-final.

If India, who won all three of their group matches to top Group A ahead of New Zealand, win their semi-final, the final will also be played in Dubai. If Australia win, the showpiece match will be played in Pakistan.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) worked diligently for several months to persuade India to participate in matches within Pakistan's borders, at one point suggesting that all of their fixtures be played in Lahore.

Unfortunately, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has asserted that governmental permission has not been granted for Indian players to visit Pakistan because of security reasons.

India are playing all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium, and they certainly seem to have the advantage on the spin-friendly pitches compared to the batting-friendly strips in Pakistan.

Spinner Varun Chakravarthy returned figures of 5/42 in India's win over New Zealand. But the match was set up by Shreyas Iyer's 79 and a late 45 by Hardik Pandya that steered India to 249/9 after being invited to bat first.

New Zealand pace bowler Matt Henry stood out with figures of 5/42 from his eight overs.

Chakravarthy took his first ODI five-wicket haul in just his second match as India bowled out New Zealand for 205 in 45.3 overs despite a valiant 81 by Kane Williamson.

Additional reporting by AFP

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