Team India saw every player chip in with significant contributions as they romped to the Champions Trophy 2025 title by beating New Zealand in the final in Dubai on Sunday. However, legendary India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin made some bold calls while picking his Team of the Tournament for the Champions Trophy. Ashwin left out many of his former teammates, picking only four Indians in his XI. The most notable absentee in Ashwin’s team was India captain and opener Rohit Sharma.
Instead, Ashwin went with the duo of New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra and England’s Ben Duckett as openers. Ravindra was adjudged the Player of the Tournament, while Duckett slammed 165 in England’s opening game against Australia.
For No. 3, Ashwin faced a significant dilemma between Virat Kohli and Joe Root but ultimately went for Kohli, crediting his performance in crunch situations like the game against Pakistan. Shreyas Iyer – India’s highest run-scorer in Champions Trophy 2024 – was an easy pick for him at No. 4.
Ashwin, however, did not include a single Indian after that till the bowlers, leaving out the likes of Axar Patel, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya. All three enjoyed good tournaments and made stellar contributions at crucial junctures for Team India.
However, Ashwin went with Australia star Josh Inglis, South African powerhouse David Miller, Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai and New Zealand’s Michael Bracewell in his XI.
Omarzai was one of the standout players of the tournament despite Afghanistan failing to make it past the group stage. Omarzai smashed 126 runs in three games at a strike rate of over 100, whilst also picking up seven wickets including a fifer.
In the bowling department, Ashwin picked the Indian spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy without second thought. Kuldeep took seven wickets in five games, whilst Chakravarthy proved to be India’s X-factor on several occasions, as he picked up nine wickets in just three matches.
For the final pick, Ashwin went with a frontline pacer. Once again, he left out an India star in the form of Mohammed Shami, instead choosing the tournament’s highest wicket-taker Matt Henry. Henry took 10 wickets in four games, while Shami got nine in five. New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner was picked as the 12th man by Ashwin.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s Champions Trophy 2025 Team of the Tournament: Rachin Ravindra, Ben Duckett, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Josh Inglis, David Miller, Azmatullah Omarzai, Michael Bracewell, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Matt Henry. 12th man: Mitchell Santner.
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