The Indian squad for the Champions Trophy 2025 has been announced, and Indian captain Rohit Sharma and Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar surprised everyone by announcing the team on Saturday. India will play all the matches of this ICC event in Dubai, where in late February and early March, the pitch is helpful for fast bowlers and the ball does not rotate much. Despite this, Team India is going with only three fast bowlers. Of these, there are doubts over Jasprit Bumrah's play, Mohammed Shami is returning to the team after the 2023 World Cup final, and there is no clarity on his form yet. Arshdeep Singh has been selected as the third fast bowler instead of Mohammed Siraj, who has played only 8 ODIs in his entire career.
Have captain Rohit Sharma and the Chief Selector made a big mistake by not selecting Mohammad Siraj? The team has not 2-3 but four spinners, of which three are all-rounders. If India enters a match with only two fast bowlers, then Hardik Pandya can play the role of the third fast bowler.
Captain Rohit Sharma explained the reason for not selecting Mohammad Siraj in the press conference. He said, “We discussed it in detail and we decided to go with only three fast bowlers because we wanted all the all-rounders to be available. It is unfortunate for Siraj, but we had no option. We need special players for special roles.”
But if we look at the statistics of ODI cricket from 2022, Mohammed Siraj has been the number-1 fast bowler not only in India but in the world. Since January 1, 2022, he has bowled 319.1 overs in 43 ODIs and taken 71 wickets at an average of 22.97. He was the highest wicket taker for India. After him, Kuldeep Yadav remained at second position with 65 wickets. Talking about fast bowlers, Mohammed Shami took 47 wickets in 22 matches and bowled 156.5 overs.
If we look at the statistics of world cricket, Mohammad Siraj was the third highest wicket taker in the world during this period and the highest wicket taking fast bowler. Whereas, if we look at the figures of Arshdeep Singh, he has bowled 57.1 overs in his 8 ODI matches and has taken 12 wickets at an average of 24.08.
It would not be wrong to say that Rohit Sharma and the team may feel the lack of a bowler like Mohammed Siraj in the Champions Trophy. This decision may make them regret in future, and Siraj could have been included in the team in place of any spinner.
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