India’s squad for the ICC Champions Trophy is yet to be announced, but speculation is rife about the players to be picked. Amidst all this speculation, legendary offspinner Harbhajan Singh has picked his Indian team for the tournament.
Much to his surprise, Harbhajan dropped two key players who are still expected to play in the tournament. Those two players are Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul. While Harbhajan Singh picked legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal over Jadeja, he did not opt for KL Rahul, who has been one of India’s best performers in the format.
Harbhajan Singh picks Indian squad for Champions Trophy
The team looks experienced and capable enough to handle difficult situations. It will be led by Rohit Sharma, who is on the front line and leading the team in the tournament. Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal are the other openers in the team and Gill is the first to open alongside his captain.
The middle order looks solid with Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer. Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy have been selected as fast bowling all-rounders while Axar Patel is the only spin bowling all-rounder in the squad. Surprisingly, KL Rahul was left out despite an excellent record in ODIs for India as a wicketkeeper.
The fast bowling looks in good form with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj making up the top three. However, Bumrah’s fitness is yet to be considered as there is no information yet on his recovery.
Kuldeep Yadav is the front-line player while Yuzvendra Chahal also finds a place in the squad ahead of all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja or any other fast bowler. Chahal also did not play in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy and Harbhajan surprised everyone by picking him in his squad.
Harbhajan Singh reveals his Indian squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025! 🇮🇳🏆
What do you think of his picks? Would you make any changes to the lineup? 🤔📝#India #RohitSharma #Champions trophy #Sportskeeda pic.twitter.com/Kq8LddXZVC
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) January 13, 2025
Harbhajan Singh picks Sanju Samson over Rishabh Pant
While speaking on his YouTube channel, Harbhajan Singh revealed that only one wicketkeeper will be selected, Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant. He backed Samson over Pant for his exploits in the 2023 ODI series in South Africa.
“I think one should choose between Sanju Samson or Rishabh Pant. I feel Sanju should have the edge because he played in South Africa. Rishabh played well in Australia but it was a long tour, so if he is rested, that is not big deal,” said Harbhajan Singh.
Sanju Samson has been in great form for India recently. He hit two consecutive hundreds against Bangladesh and South Africa while opening the batting. In all, he has scored three hundreds in T20Is, which includes two against South Africa and one against Bangladesh.
Samson also has an excellent ODI record. The 30-year-old has scored 510 runs in 16 matches at an average of 56.66. On the other hand, Pant did not play white-ball cricket. from the series against Sri Lanka in July 2024.
Axar Patel through Ravindra Jadeja
Harbhajan Singh also picked Axar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja in his squad. He feels that Axar is experienced enough to replace Ravindra Jadeja in the white-ball format after his performances in T20Is over the last few months.
“I have picked Axar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja. I think Axar is ready to fill the role that Jadeja did for so many years,” he added.
India will play all their Champions Trophy matches in Dubai after the Indian government denied the team permission to travel to Pakistan. The men in blue have been drawn in Group A with Bangladesh, New Zealand and hosts Pakistan.
