Champions Trophy team has been made, 13 names confirmed, 2 names in waiting list

Last updated:13 January 2025, 12:23 IST

Due to delay in the fitness report of Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav, the Indian team is not being announced for the Champions Trophy. If sources are to be believed, the team has been finalized in the meeting of captain-coach and selectors held on Saturday. Rohit…read more

New DelhiThe countdown for the Champions Trophy has started, Bangladesh, New Zealand, England and Afghanistan have announced their respective teams. Despite the selection committee meeting with the captain and coach, the team has not been announced. If sources are to be believed, fifteen players of the team and four standby players have also been finalized, yet the team has been kept in a closed envelope. If sources are to be believed, captain Rohit Sharma has requested for the announcement of the team after waiting till the last moment.

The main reason behind stopping the announcement of the team is the fitness of the two match-winning bowlers, for which the selectors have been asked to stop the team on paper for the time being. If sources are to be believed, the first list could be made to the teams by the night of 11th January and changes could be made in the list by 12th January. ICC does this to make it easier to book visas and hotels.

Announcement stopped due to Bumrah-Kuldeep

13 names have been finalized for the Champions Trophy and the two names about which there is doubt are both match-winning bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah. You might remember that Bumrah got injured on the second day of the fifth Test and was taken for a scan in Sydney. Earlier it was reported that he/she had a strain in his/her waist, but the way his/her injury is being continuously covered up indicates the seriousness of Bumrah’s injury. Similar is the condition of Kuldeep Yadav, who is undergoing rehab at the BCCI Center of Excellence in Bangalore and his/her fitness report is expected to come by 26th. If sources are to be believed, the names of Kuldeep, Bumrah and Shami have been agreed upon, just the fitness report is awaited.

Confusion regarding back up bowling

On one hand, there are still many questions regarding the fitness of Mohammed Shami, while on the other hand, match winners like Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav have not been fit yet. In such a situation, the big question in everyone’s mind is what will happen if both the players are not fit. If sources are to be believed, both the captain and the coach are not satisfied with the players who have been kept on standby. Anyway, especially without Bumrah, the Indian team’s dream of winning the Champions Trophy seems incomplete. Mukesh Kumar and Ravi Bishnoi have been kept as back-up bowlers but both of them do not have the experience of performing on the big platform. That is why the selectors want to wait for the report of Bumrah and Kuldeep so that there is no dearth in the opportunity of winning the Champions Trophy after 12 years.