Form and fandom can be fickle in professional sports.
In the first week of 2025, Indian cricket was despondent following its disastrous Test series defeats to New Zealand (0-3, home) and Australia (1-3, away). A cloud of uncertainty hung over the big names. Six weeks later, that gloomy time seems like a distant memory. As spring approaches, there is again a sense of optimism as the Men in Blue embark on a journey for another ICC crown when they take on Bangladesh in their opening fixture of the Champions Trophy at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Thursday.
India’s whitewash of England in the recent three-match series was a much-needed confidence booster ahead of this event. It also helped the team find answers to some nagging questions.
There were concerns surrounding the form of key batters, and fortunately, most of them got some runs under their belt. Shubman Gill was the player of the series, while skipper Rohit Sharma cracked a fine century. Virat Kohli, too, managed a half-century in the third ODI. Shreyas Iyer is in a rich vein of form and will anchor the middle-order alongside K.L. Rahul, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja.
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Axar’s ability to take on the spinners during the middle phase of the innings allows the management to use him as a floater.
However, the big concern continues to be the pace bowling attack, which suffered a major setback when Jasprit Bumrah was ruled out of the competition with a back injury. Mohammed Shami has slowly eased into a rhythm since his comeback but is yet to hit the peak he showed in the ‘23 World Cup.
It will also be interesting to see if Harshit Rana, who played all three games against England, gets to start ahead of Arshdeep Singh. The absence of Bumrah means India will have to bank on its spinners, and for that, Pandya will have a huge role to play. If the all-rounder stays fit through the tournament and can do the third seamer’s job effectively, the two-time champion can play three spinners without affecting the batting depth.
Another potential selection quandary will be whether to bank on Kuldeep Yadav’s experience or go for Varun Chakaravarthy’s mystery spin. The pitch in Dubai is expected to aid the tweakers, and the pleasant day-time temperatures mean dew might not have a huge role to play.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh hasn’t played an ODI this year and lost 0-3 to West Indies in its previous series. Without star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, the Tigers will need senior pros like Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah to shoulder the batting load. On the bowling front, the outfit has a potent pace attack with the fiery Nahid Rana and Tanzim Hasan alongside veterans Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman. Najmul Hossain Shanto will depend on his quicks to rattle a strong Indian batting line-up.
In a tournament where no team has a defining edge, India seems to have the most sorted line-up, considering there hasn’t been much turnover in its ODI squad from the one that reached the final of the 50-over World Cup in 2023. While the pain of that loss in the final will continue to linger, Rohit’s men will look to start strongly in pursuit of another ICC one-day international title.