After the conclusion of the almost two-month-long tour of Australia, which ended on a sour note, the Indian men’s cricket team will shift its attention to white-ball cricket. The 2024 T20 World Cup winners will face England in a five-match series at home that starts on January 22 in Kolkata, and then both teams will play three ODI matches as well. The ODIs, which are scheduled to take place in Nagpur, Cuttack, and Ahmedabad on February 6, 9, and 12, respectively, will help India prepare for the 2025 edition of the ICC Champions Trophy.
The ninth edition of the Champions Trophy will be played from February 19 to March 9. Three venues in Pakistan—Lahore, Karachi, and Rawalpindi—will host 10 matches of the eight-team tournament, and matches involving the Indian team will be played at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. India will open its campaign on February 20 against Bangladesh and then take on Pakistan in the high-voltage match on February 23.
Ahead of the start of the Champions Trophy, which is making a comeback after eight years, BCCI will announce India’s 15-member squad for the tournament at the latest by January 12.
For the 2025 edition of the ICC Champions Trophy, India is almost certain to play under the leadership of Rohit Sharma. Rohit, who was horribly out of form in the last three Test series for India, will open as well in the premier ICC event. It will be interesting to see if Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is India’s first-choice opening batter in Test cricket and was also part of the T20 World Cup 2024 squad, manages to secure a place in the Champions Trophy squad. The 23-year-old left-handed batter is yet to make his 50-over debut for India.
Shubman Gill is likely to be Rohit’s first-choice opening partner, and if picked, Jaiswal can be the backup.
Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul scored 500+ runs each in the ODI World Cup 2023, and they are confirmed selections for the Champions Trophy as well, along with Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja, but there are question marks over the availability of Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav.
Bumrah didn’t bowl in the second innings of the fifth Test against Australia due to a back spasm, and there has been no official update about his fitness. It has been reported that if Bumrah’s injury is Grade 3, then it will require him to have a minimum of three months of rest and rehabilitation programs.
Kuldeep, on the other hand, has been out of action since October 2024, and he underwent surgery for a groin injury in November 2024. He is yet to start bowling, which makes him a doubtful starter for the ICC event.
Mohammed Shami hasn’t played for India since the ODI World Cup 2023 final, but he is in line to get picked after making a successful comeback in domestic cricket. Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, and Axar Patel are other players who could be part of the Champions Trophy squad.
Rishabh Pant is also certain to get selected, but the same can’t be said about all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, despite his impressive performances in the three ODIs and five Tests played so far.
India’s likely squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami
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