Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], March 4 (ANI): As India gears up for its Champions Trophy semi-final clash against Australia today, the enthusiasm among sports lovers in Uttar Pradesh is palpable.

Since India won its quarter-final game at the 2011 World Cup, the two sides have faced each other four times in the ICC ODI tournaments. India and Australia have won two games each.

India's victories came in the round-robin matches at the 2019 and 2023 World Cups. On the other hand, their heartbreaking defeats unfolded in the 2015 semi-finals and the 2023 final.

Since their last encounter on November 19, 2023, there has been a complete difference between the two sides that will line up on Tuesday in front of a vibrant crowd in Dubai.

In Ayodhya, local resident Om Prakash Shukla expressed confidence in Team India's performance, saying, 'Team India has been performing very well. Undoubtedly, it will play really well and win today's match...Rohit Sharma's captaincy is really good. He played 4 spinners, and we saw results of the same... Semi-final will be a good match to watch. Both teams are excellent. But we support Team India, it will win.'

The excitement is not confined to Ayodhya alone. In Kanpur, young cricketers are also eager to see their team shine. Ansh Yadav, a local enthusiast, stated, 'This is the semi-final match. India will win, and we have a lot of expectations from them.'

Adding to the wave of optimism, Kuldeep Yadav's former coach, Kapil Dev Pandey, shared his thoughts on the match.

'This match will be amazing... Millions of Indians want our team to win and reach the finals. Kuldeep's (Yadav) performance has been exceptional, especially against Pakistan when he took three wickets. I want him to keep it up... The whole team is balanced,' said Pandey, emphasizing the strength of the squad.

Meanwhile, ahead of the semi-final clash, people in Varanasi also expressed their support for the Men in Blue.

Saifi Ahmed, coach of a cricket academy in the city, said, '...Both teams are equals. Whoever plays better will win. It is our desire for Team India to become the champion of the Champions Trophy. Both teams have a good bowling attack, we have a good spin attack. I think the entire Team India will do well and we will be the champions.

A local, Deen Dayal Mishra said, '...We have an advantage that we have good spinners and Dubai has a slightly slow track. This makes it quite difficult for Australia to play...So, our focus should be to strategise for Travis Head. The country will motivate and cheer for Team India.' (ANI)