India's Champions Trophy squad to be announced after Vijay Hazare final, Rahul not in keepers' race: Report

Six teams have already named their squads for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 apart from Pakistan and India. India asked for an extension following an intense Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia and are likely to name the side by this weekend.

The BCCI selection committee is likely to name the Indian squad for the ICC Champions Trophy after the Vijay Hazare Trophy final. The domestic one-day competition ends on Saturday, January 18 and the squad is set to be named a day later on January 19 as per a report by the news agency PTI. The deadline for the squad announcement was January 12, five weeks prior to the start of the tournament, however, I had asked for an extension following a gruelling Border-Gavaskar Trophy in India.

The report stated that KL Rahul, whose ability to keep the wickets came in handy during the ODI World Cup in terms of providing balance to the side in Rishabh Pant's absence, is unlikely to retain the role behind the stumps for the Champions Trophy. Rahul will be in the squad but purely as a middle-order batting option with Rishabh Pant being the frontrunner for the wicketkeeper's slot. The hustle will be for the backup keeper's spot and the race is between Dhrv Jurel, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan.

Sanju Samson might have fallen behind in the race as he didn't take part in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and with Ishan Kishan not being considered even in the T20Is after the central contract debacle last year, Dhruv Jurel's prospects look good for late selection into the ODI side.

Another place that the selectors have been mulling would be the second spinner. Varun Chakravarthy with a five-wicket haul in the pre-quarter-final while being amidst wickets until that point has shown his consistency in white-ball cricket and might just pip Ravi Bishnoi, the other contender to the spot. Kuldeep Yadav is currently in the process of rehab and is scheduled to appear for a fitness test and match simulation. If Kuldeep doesn't make it, Chakravarthy has a high chance of getting picked.

Then there is Washington Sundar as well! Which way will the selectors go? The next few days are going to be interesting as the selectors, the team management and the captain align themselves to pick the side.

(With PTI inputs)