"He has been picked on potential" - Rohit Sharma explains young batter's selection in India's 2025 Champions Trophy squad

Team India captain Rohit Sharma stated that Yashasvi Jaiswal has been picked in the 15-member Champions Trophy squad on the basis of his potential. He also admitted that some players were unlucky to miss out, but stated that it is not possible to please everyone.

Chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced India's squad for the 2025 Champions Trophy on Saturday, January 18 in the presence of skipper Rohit. While Indian captain and Shubman Gill were picked as the main openers, young Jaiswal, who is yet to play an ODI, was included as the third opening option.

Speaking at a press conference after the Men in Blue squad for the ICC event was announced, Rohit shed light on the decision to include Jaiswal in the 15-member squad and said (as quoted by ICC):

“We picked Jaiswal on the basis of what he has shown in the last few months despite not playing ODI cricket. He has been picked on potential and sometimes you have to do that.

“In that, some players will miss out, it’s very unlucky but you can't please everyone. You try and make the best team to win games in different situations and I feel with these guys you can have that,” the 37-year-old went on to add.

While Gill had a forgettable Test tour of Australia, his place in the ODI squad was never under doubt. The 25-year-old has also retained his position as vice-captain of the one-day team. Elaborating on the decision, Agarkar commented:

“Shubman was vice captain in Sri Lanka anyway, I wouldn't read too much into it. A lot of the feedback comes from the dressing room. You also want to keep your options open. One of the challenges is that not many are leading their state teams nowadays, but you are always on the lookout for anyone who has got some leadership qualities."

Gill has featured in 47 ODIs so far and has smashed 2,328 runs at an average of 58.20 and a strike rate of 101.74, with the aid of six hundreds and 13 fifties.

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A glance at India's 2025 Champions Trophy squad

There were not too many surprises in the Men in Blue's 2025 Champions Trophy squad. Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant retained their respective spots, which meant there was no place for Karun Nair despite his exploits in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

India went for four all-rounders in Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja. Among pacers, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami and Arshdeep Singh were picked, while Mohammed Siraj was left out.

India's Champions Trophy squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja