Team India’s squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025 and the ODI series against England was announced on Saturday in Mumbai via a press conference. India’s Captain Rohit Sharma and BCCI’s chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, addressed the media after the 2-hour delay. In the squad, Karun Nayar’s name is not included. After having an average of more than 700 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he was expected to make it into India’s squad for the Champions Trophy; however, his name is not on the list. Agarkar explains why they didn’t include the Vidharbha player. Also, he shared update on Jasprit Bumrah’s availability.
Bumrah’s availability
Bumrah, however, “won’t be available for the first two ODIs against England,” with Harshit Rana stepping in for those matches. India’s star pacer Mohammed Shami has returned to the ODI squad for the first time since the 2023 World Cup. Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is also part of the squad, though he has some injury concerns.
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Agarkar on Karun Nair’s exclusion
Despite scoring over 700 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Vidarbha captain Karun Nair was not included in the squad. Nair has been in outstanding form, scoring 752 runs in seven matches, and remaining unbeaten in six innings. He has tallied five centuries and a fifty, with a highest score of 163* and a strike rate of 125.96. Agarkar commented on Nair’s exclusion, saying, “Someone averages 700+, those are special performances. At the moment, finding spot in this team is difficult.”
Nair remains the top-run scorer in the tournament and is playing in the final against Karnataka in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Abhishek Nair in List A & ODIs
| Format | Matches | Runs | Highest Score | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ODIs | 3 | 0 | 0* | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| List A | 99 | 2145 | 118 | 95.63 | 2 | 10 |
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