S Badrinath predicts India's Champions Trophy squad; excludes Bumrah, Jadeja
Badrinath picked Rishabh Pant as his first-choice wicketkeeper, with KL Rahul playing as a specialist batter.
The ICC Champions Trophy is all set to take place after a gap of eight years, with the 2025 edition being hosted by Pakistan and UAE, starting from February 19 in Karachi. While the ICC had set the deadline for squad announcement for January 12, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) hasn't announced India's squad for the tournament, requesting for an extension until January 18 or 19.
Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath has shared his predictions for the Men in Blue's squad. India, placed in Group A alongside Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand, are coming off a 3-1 Test series loss to Australia away from home. The national selectors are set to finalise the squad by mid-January, with injuries to key players creating the delay in the announcement.
According to a TOI report, Jasprit Bumrah has been advised to complete bed rest due to a back injury, creating questions about his participation. Similarly, Kuldeep Yadav, recovering from groin surgery, is also uncertain.
Also Read: Jasprit Bumrah advised bed rest, Champions Trophy availability in question
Badrinath excluded Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja and opted for Mukesh Kumar and Washington Sundar instead. The former batter also proposed including Varun Chakaravarthy as a backup for Kuldeep, if the latter fails to recover in time.
The predicted squad features Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Mohammed Shami, alongside young players such as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Arshdeep Singh. Notably, Badrinath picked Rishabh Pant as his first-choice wicketkeeper, with KL Rahul playing as a specialist batter.
Subramaniam Badrinath's India squad 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
*Varun Chakaravarthy to replace Kuldeep Yadav, if the latter doesn't require from injury in time.
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