The Board of Control for Cricket in India announced India’s team for the next Champions Trophy on January 18. The team consisted of 15 members, many of whom were expecting. Yuzvendra Chahal and Sanju Samson, for example, were not drafted. As a result, the two cricket players’ neglect has been a contentious issue that has generated a lot of controversy.
Given Samson’s average of 56.66 in his 14 ODI innings played thus far, former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh said he should be included in the squad.
“I genuinely feel sorry for Sanju. He has been dropped despite scoring runs. Although I am aware that you may only choose 15, I believe his batting fits the format. Despite having a 55–56 average, he isn’t even a second wicketkeeper. People question, “In whose place?” when we discuss choosing him. “Placements can be made,” Harbhajan said to Switch.
I’m not sure what he did wrong: Harbhajan Singh
The former World Cup champion also offered his thoughts on Chahal’s exclusion.
“Yuzvendra Chahal is also absent. Two of the four spinners you selected are left-armers. For variation, you may have also added a leg-spinner. Chahal bowls quite well. I’m not sure what he did wrong, but he doesn’t belong on this team,” Harbhajan continued.
Samson has continued to be a consistent member of the T20I team, but Chahal appears to have been shut out of India’s plans entirely. August 2023 was the last time the leg-spinner represented the country. He has since participated in white-ball domestic cricket, the Indian Premier League, and the County Championship.
Speaking of Chahal’s stats, he has taken 121 wickets in 69 innings while playing for his country in the 50-over format. Even if his numbers aren’t poor, it appears that India has discovered new spinners for their white-ball teams. Regarding the Champions Trophy 2025, India has selected Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, and Kuldeep Yadav.
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