S Badrinath predicts India’s Champions Trophy team, excludes Bumrah, Jadeja

After eight years, the ICC Champions Trophy is finally scheduled to return. Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates will host the 2025 edition, which will begin in Karachi on February 19. Although the ICC had set January 12 as the deadline for announcing the Indian team, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has yet to do so and has asked for an extension till January 18 or 19.

Subramaniam Badrinath, a former Indian cricket player, has published his predictions for the Men in Blue team. Along with Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand, India is in Group A. They recently suffered a 3-1 away loss to Australia in the Test series. Due to injuries to important players, the announcement of the final squad by the national selectors is delayed until mid-January.

Jasprit Bumrah has been instructed to stay in bed all day because of a back problem, which raises concerns over his involvement, according to a TOI report. Uncertainty also surrounds Kuldeep Yadav, who is recuperating from groin surgery.

Instead of Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja, Badrinath chose Washington Sundar and Mukesh Kumar. Varun Chakaravarthy was also suggested by the former batter as a backup for Kuldeep in case the latter does not recover in time.

The projected team includes young players like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Arshdeep Singh in addition to Rohit Sharma, Mohammed Shami, and Virat Kohli. Interestingly, KL Rahul was selected by Badrinath as a speciality batter, and Rishabh Pant was chosen as his first-choice wicketkeeper.

Subramaniam Badrinath’s India Team for Champions Trophy:

Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav*, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar