Varun Chakravarthy or Harshit Rana—who will meet the selector's eye as Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement in case the veteran pacer is ruled out of ICC Champions Trophy 2025?
Jasprit Bumrah, India’s pace stalwart, is doubtful for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy. Despite his injury in the final innings of the BGT test at Sydney, the Indian selectors picked him for the Champions Trophy squad, citing his dominance for India across formats with the ball.
Jasprit Bumrah has been reported to undergo scans in New Zealand, as he has been reported to still be undergoing medical attention, and the ace pacer is about to start his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy. The BCCI is not keen on revealing any details of Jasprit Bumrah’s availability for the Champions Trophy.
The teams in the Champions Trophy are allowed to make changes to their squad without any special permission from the ICC until the 11th of February. India would also look to finalize a call on players to be swapped in for Jasprit Bumrah for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Mohammed Shami and Arshdeep Singh—2 other pacers in the CT
Shami and Arshdeep are among frontline pacers for India in the CT (Image Credit: X)
Veteran Indian pacer Mohammed Shami is back from his injury after a heroic World Cup in 2023. Shami’s return has given some hope to the Indian pace attack, while alongside the veteran, India has left out their most regular ODI pacer over the past few years, Mohammed Siraj.
Siraj has been an inevitable part of the Indian side but was left out owing to his poor performance in ICC tournaments in the past. Instead, the Indian selectors preferred variety over experience and picked Arshdeep Singh, the T20 World Cup winner.
Arshdeep would bring in a natural angle with his left-arm bowling and is also often known as a regular wicket-taker with the white ball. The ace pacer, who is currently India’s highest wicket-taker in T20s, has been picked into an ODI squad after a long span.
Harshit Rana has raised eyebrows with a brilliant debut against England
Harshit Rana made his ODI debut against England (Image Credit: MSN)
India pace star Harshit Rana has proved his sensational presence in international cricket ever since he made his debut for India with the red ball in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Perth. Rana’s hostile pace, unique variations, and accuracy in line and length have impressed many.
Harshit has been up to the mark in the shortest format of the game as well when he came in to bowl as the concussion substitute for Shivam Dube after the all-rounder left the ground during the 4th T20 of the IND vs ENG series.
Harshit’s performance has been stunning in the ODI series as well; he made his debut for India in the first ODI and picked 3 crucial wickets when he changed the course of the game during his second spell. As of now, Harshit Rana has 4 wickets in the 50-over format.
Varun Chakravarthy made his ODI debut at Cuttack
Varun Chakravarthy's maiden ODI wicket (Image Credit: X)
Just at the brink of the Champions Trophy, Indian leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy, who has taken control of India’s T20 format, has made his debut in the ODI format. Chakravarthy replaced Kuldeep Yadav, a veteran of the format who nearly has 175 wickets in the 50-over format.
Varun Chakravarthy, on his ODI debut, gave a major breakthrough to India, as he gave a sigh of relief with Phil Salt’s wicket after the two English openers gave a very promising start to the English side.
Who is more likely to replace Bumrah if he is ruled out of CT 2025?
Likely Jasprit Bumrah is one of India’s greatest when it comes to crucial junctures of the game, especially in the ICC tournaments where he has often been a promising performer. Bumrah is unlikely to be able to feature in the Champions Trophy 2025.
Considering the pace Harshit Rana can generate and his accuracy added to his wicket-taking brilliance, Rana is most likely to replace Bumrah. However, considering the spin-friendly track of Dubai, Varun Chakravarthy might also come in handy, keeping his great form against tough opposition in the head.
It is worth noting that either Varun Chakravarthy or Harshit Rana will replace Bumrah; the decision or any indicative report is yet awaited on Bumrah’s availability from the BCCI.
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