ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Ravichandran Ashwin questions India's selection call to drop Yashasvi Jaiswal

Yashasvi Jaiswal made his ODI debut against England in 2025.

India made some interesting changes to their provisional squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. While injured Jasprit Bumrah was replaced by Harshit Rana, the Men in Blue made a bold decision to drop Yashasvi Jaiswal and carry an extra spinner, Varun Chakaravarthy, to the tournament.

India’s line of thought has raised questions about their planning for the competition. Jaiswal was picked in the provisional squad based on his impressive form in red-ball cricket.

The management even handed him his ODI cap in the first ODI of the three-match series against England in Nagpur before dropping him from the tournament. Critics have now questioned head coach Gautam Gambhir’s judgment of the player based on his performance in just one game.

Veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has shared his insights on India’s selection calls for the tournament.

Ravichandran Ashwin questions India’s selection call to drop Yashasvi Jaiswal

Reflecting on India’s squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Ashwin questioned India’s plan to take five spinners for the tournament. He also raised concerns about Yashasvi Jaiswal’s exclusion from the squad.

Ashwin said, “What I don’t understand is the number of spinners we are taking to Dubai. Five spinners and we have made Yashasvi Jaiswal sit out. Yeah I understand that we take three or four spinners for a tour. But five spinners in Dubai? I don’t know. I think we are one spinner too many if not two.“

Ashwin also emphasized that Kuldeep and Varun can play as a duo, but stressed that the pitches in Dubai won’t assist spinners much, as seen in the ILT20 league.

He added, “I don’t think there is any doubt that Kuldeep Yadav will walk into the team. So how will you make space for Varun. Is he bowling well? Of course. Either you bring in Varun and Kuldeep as a duo, which I feel would be good,”

“But my question is, in Dubai, are you expecting the ball to turn? In the recently held ILTO, we saw that the ball was not turning that much in Dubai and teams were chasing 180-run totals with ease. I feel a bit uncomfortable with the team.“

India will start their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 campaign against Bangladesh on February 20 in Dubai.

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