 "Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of Champions Trophy 2025 due to back injury")
India’s fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, has been ruled out of the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy due to a lower back injury, as confirmed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday.
In his place, the senior men's selection committee has called up Harshit Rana to the squad for the prestigious tournament, which begins on February 19 in Pakistan.
Additionally, mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has been included in the squad, replacing Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was initially part of the provisional squad. Check all latest updates on Champions Trophy 2025 here
This is a significant blow for India as they head into the Champions Trophy, a tournament they have won twice, in 2002 and 2013. Bumrah's recent performances across all formats had solidified his reputation as one of the best bowlers in the world. The 31-year-old was named player of the tournament during India's victorious 2024 T20 World Cup campaign, where he took 15 wickets at an exceptional average of 8.26. ALSO READ: Pakistan selectors confident about Rauf playing in Champions Trophy opener
Bumrah was also a key figure in India's attack throughout their five-match Test series in Australia, despite the visitors losing 3-1. While the rest of the bowling unit underperformed, Bumrah's performance was often hailed as one of the greatest individual efforts by a bowler in an Australian Test series. He ended with 32 wickets from nine innings at an extraordinary average of 13.06.
India's heavy reliance on Bumrah led to him bowling extended spells during the series, and he was even seen tiredly requesting captain Rohit Sharma not to give him the old ball during the fourth Test in Melbourne. Ultimately, the increased workload seemed to take its toll when, on Day 2 of the fifth Test, Bumrah, who was captaining the side in Rohit's absence, walked off the field in Sydney and was later seen leaving the stadium for scans. He was unable to bowl during India's second innings. India's matches in the tournament will be held in Dubai, following a hybrid model agreement.
India squad for Champions Trophy 2025: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill (Vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (Wicketkeeper), Rishabh Pant (Wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, and Varun Chakaravarthy.