3 reasons why India dropping Yashasvi Jaiswal from Champions Trophy 2025 squad is the wrong move

India have finalized their squad for the Champions Trophy 2025 after making a mix of forced and unforced changes to the provisional list. Ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the tournament with a back injury, paving the way for Harshit Rana's inclusion. Another change comes in the form of Varun Chakravarthy's addition at the expense of Yashasvi Jaiswal.

The left-handed opening batter recently made his ODI debut in the series opener against England in Nagpur. He scored 15 runs and took a stunning catch in his maiden appearance, but was dropped after Virat Kohli recovered from his knee injury and Shreyas Iyer impressed with a fifty in the first match.

Team India updated squad for the Champions Trophy 2025

Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill (Vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy

Non-traveling substitutes: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammed Siraj, and Shivam Dube. The three players will travel to Dubai as and when required.

On that note, let us look at three reasons why India dropping Yashasvi Jaiswal from the Champions Trophy 2025 squad is the wrong move.

#1 A clear indicator of impulsive and volatile decision-making

Team India were recently warned by former India pacer Zaheer Khan of creating insecurity within the team with their recent experimentation. The biggest victim of the entire charade is arguably Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has moved from a genuine starter to a non-traveling substitute in the span of a couple of days.

The management either had the choice of backing their existing combination, which has relatively fared well, or staying true to their changes through experimentation. However, they found a gear midway through these two aforementioned ideologies.

Jaiswal's instant rise and fall, Rana and Chakravarthy being fast-tracked, and KL Rahul's demotion in the batting order have all come in a flash, with each of them set to bring out inevitable ramifications.

#2 Space for five spinners but no backup batter is imbalance of the highest degree

There was only a minuscule chance that Jaiswal would have got game time in the Champions Trophy. The left-handed trait he brings to the table is overruled by the fact that it is the proven opening combination of the captain and vice-captain operating at the top.

Even if Gill is viewed as an option in the middle-order, giving Jaiswal room to open the innings, Iyer's recent knocks have quashed that line of thinking. India have backed their incumbent top four to fire in the Champions Trophy but without any backup as support in case of an immediate crisis.

On the flip side, India are taking five spin-bowling options to the UAE, out of which a maximum of three are likely to feature in the playing XI. Instead of having two spinners idle on the bench, isn't it better if at least one of them was a pure batter even only as a cushion to fall back on should things go awry?

One of the spin options just has one ODI appearance under his belt, another one is looking rusty after coming from a lengthy injury layoff, and one spin candidate has been absent from the proceedings altogether.

Just because there is a chance that a player might not feature, does not mean that he is cast aside entirely, especially when the player was firmly in your plans just a week ago.

#3 The mixed message from the management will not help Jaiswal's confidence

It is tricky to be in Jaiswal's shoes at the moment. From being one of the first names in the red-ball team and being linked to the captaincy to getting dropped in the white-ball side is quite a contrast.

Sadly, this is not the first time Jaiswal has been on the wrong end of the management's impromptu radical decisions. Before the 2024 T20 World Cup, Jaiswal was certain to open the batting with Rohit Sharma. However, the last-minute decision to revamp the top-order with Virat Kohli as an opener and Rishabh Pant at No. 3 meant that the youngster had to sit out.

Ahead of the Champions Trophy, Jaiswal was cast false hope when he was assured a place in the playing XI at the expense of Shreyas Iyer. However, the left-handed batter finds himself out of the musical chair contest, with the management adjusting the seats to their preference.

Testing the tolerance of a talent like Yashasvi Jaiswal might not be the best course of action. For short-term justifications and adjustments, the management are risking long-term returns. The setup under coach Gautam Gambhir has also earned a notorious reputation for their lack of communication, which only compounds the issue.