The Indian cricket team along with players and staff has departed from Mumbai to reach Dubai ahead of their participation in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 that begins February 19. India will play all its tournament fixtures at Dubai International Stadium but since Pakistan serves as the joint host of this tournament, all other matches will be played in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi.
Departure from Mumbai to Dubai
The entire Indian team and support staff were seen getting ready for their journey to Dubai at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. India’s all matches will be played at the Dubai International Stadium, while the remainder of the tournament will be played in Pakistan.
Team travels together under new BCCI policy
Initially, the Indian team used to travel in two separate batches. However, as per the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) new travel policy, according to which the squad will have to travel together for international tours, the entire team boarded the same flight from Mumbai.
Injuries and team changes
India will play without their pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who is still recovering from a lower back injury he suffered during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney last month. Fast bowling all-rounder Harshit Rana has been named in the squad in place of Bumrah.
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Also, wrist-spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been included in the squad in place of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was part of the provisional squad. Meanwhile, Mohammed Siraj and Shivam Dube will remain as non-travelling options.
India’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 schedule
Two-time Champions Trophy winners India will begin their campaign against Bangladesh on February 20. The blockbuster clash against Pakistan will be held on February 23, while their final Group A match will be against New Zealand on March 2.
India’s Squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025
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 and Varun Chakravarthy.
Final Thoughts
With a balanced squad and strong leadership of Rohit Sharma, India will aim to win their third ICC Champions Trophy title. But before that all the eyes will be on the India vs Pakistan match scheduled to play on February 23, promises to be the biggest highlight of the tournament. Will Team India be able to bring back the trophy home, after 2013? Only time will tell!