Aakash Chopra recently announced his Indian squad selections for the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy and the preceding ODI series against England. Noticeably absent from his choices were Sanju Samson and Suryakumar Yadav.
India’s three-match ODI series against England begins on 6 February in Nagpur. The Champions Trophy starts on 19 February, with India’s first match against Bangladesh scheduled for 20 February in Dubai.
Chopra shared his squad on his YouTube channel. He based his selections on India’s 2023 ODI World Cup squad, assuming Rohit Sharma would remain as captain and opening batsman.
Chopra explained his rationale for excluding Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson from the ODI lineup.
“I feel Suryakumar Yadav won’t be a part of this team. He is actually not playing ODIs and hasn’t scored runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy either. Sanju Samson hasn’t played at all. One didn’t play and the other didn’t score runs, so their names are not going to come up,” he reasoned.
Shreyas Iyer secured a middle-order batting spot in Chopra’s squad. Chopra highlighted Iyer’s impressive performance since the World Cup.
“Since the start of the World Cup, he has scored 620 runs in 15 innings, with two centuries, at a strike rate of 112 and an average of 52. Iyer is on fire,” Chopra said.
Chopra selected KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant as the wicketkeeper-batsmen. He noted Rahul’s strong performance since the 2023 World Cup.
“KL Rahul was playing after that. Since the start of the 2023 World Cup, he has scored 560 runs at an average of 56 in 14 innings. He has struck a century and three half-centuries. He will also be there in the team. He was playing as a keeper then and might play as a keeper now too,” he elaborated.
Chopra justified his inclusion of Rishabh Pant despite Pant’s limited ODI appearances recently. He also acknowledged Pant’s modest ODI statistics.
“Rishabh Pant didn’t play in the World Cup. What’s his ODI record? He has scored his runs at a strike rate of 106 and an average of 33.5, with one century and five half-centuries. The numbers aren’t great, but he will come into the team in place of Ishan Kishan,” the former India player added.
Pant’s last ODI appearance was in August of the previous year against Sri Lanka, where he scored only six runs.
