Team India is all set to begin its Champions Trophy 2025 campaign in less than a week as they bid for their third title in the tournament. The team selection was a close call as batters like Ishan Kishan and later Yashasvi Jaiswal missed the plane despite performing in the domestic circuit. However, one name that stood out was Karun Nair who made a statement in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy but was snubbed in favour of big names.

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Nair opens up on CT 2025 snub

According to Nair, chief selector Agarkar had a clear plan for the Champions Trophy squad. Nair's omission comes despite him having an impressive record in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, which saw him in the conversation for a place in the tournament. However, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Rishabh Pant were preferred in the squad. 

"It was good to see that a clear statement was given, and I think he made it very clear that, you know, what their thinking was, which makes it easier for the player to understand where he needs to go and what he needs to do. For me at least, it is just about focusing on the next match and focusing on winning the Ranji Trophy at the moment," Karun Nair told RevSportz in an interview.

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India will open their Champions Trophy 2025 campaign against Bangladesh on Feb 19 in Dubai before playing against Pakistan on Feb 23. The Men in Blue will then face New Zealand on March 2 at the same venue.

India’s squad for ICC Champions Trophy, 2025: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill (Vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy.

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Non-traveling substitutes: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj and Shivam Dube. The three players will travel to Dubai as and when required.