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But, the Indians are not at full strength, having lost ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah to a lower back injury sustained while leading India in the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney.
Members of the Indian Cricket Team arriving at Mumbai airport for departure to Dubai (Viral Bhayani)
Champions Trophy season is upon us, and the Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team is all set to make their journey to Dubai for the 2025 edition of the returning tournament.
The ICC Champions Trophy is set to take place in Pakistan and Dubai, from February 19, with India allotted into Group A of the eight-team tournament.
All Group A matches of the Indian team will be held at the Dubai International Stadium, as per the agreement. while the rest of the games will take place in Pakistan.
With less than a week to go and the ODI series with England coming to an end, the time has arrived for the Indian team to embark on their next endeavor, as they were seen checking into the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai to check in for their flight to Dubai.
It was believed by sources that the Indian team would leave in two batches for the tournament. But after the renewed travel policies set in place by the BCCI last month, which stated that the team will travel together for its abroad tours, it is reported that the entire squad shall leave together.
#WATCH | Mumbai: The first batch of the Indian Cricket team departs for Dubai to participate in the ICC Champions Trophy.All matches of Team India will be held in Dubai, while the rest will take place in Pakistan. The ICC Champions Trophy will begin on February 19 and will… pic.twitter.com/C4VdRPddyn
— ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2025
But, the Indians are not at full strength, having lost ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah to a lower back injury sustained while leading India in the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney.
Bumrah was undoubtedly India’s best bowler and his absence is a significant blow to India, especially given his match-winning performances in the T20 World Cup 2024.
Fast-bowling all-rounder Harshit Rana has been named as the replacement for Bumrah, while wrist-spinner Varun Chakaravarthy was also included at the expense of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was originally a part of the provisional team.
Two-time Champions Trophy winners India will kick off their hunt for a third title with their opener against Bangladesh on February 20, before taking on Pakistan in a highly-anticipated clash on February 23. The Men in Blue will then play their final Group A match against New Zealand on March 2.
India’s squad for the ICC Champions Trophy:
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammad Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakravarthy.
