A total of 8 teams will participate in the Champions Trophy 2025, out of which 6 teams have been announced so far. The 2 teams that have not been announced yet include India and Pakistan. However, both the teams are expected to be announced by the end of this week. KL Rahul's role as wicketkeeper during the ODI World Cup gave balance to the Indian team, but now it does not seem that this Karnataka batsman will take up this responsibility again in limited overs cricket.

The national selection committee is expected to meet on January 19, a day after the Vijay Hazare Trophy final, in which a 15-member team will be selected for the Champions Trophy. In this meeting, there is a possibility of discussion about the second wicketkeeper and a leg spinner if Kuldeep Yadav is not fit in time. As far as the wicketkeeper is concerned, there is no doubt that the first choice is Rishabh Pant. There may be a triangular contest between Dhruv Jurel, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan for the second wicketkeeper's position in the team. Looking at the current circumstances, it seems that Jurel can win this. 

Uncertainty remains over wicketkeeper

Sanju Samson decided not to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, which has weakened his case. Kishan has so far scored 933 runs in 27 ODIs, including a double century, but he went off the selection committee's radar due to not playing domestic cricket last year. As for Jurel, he impressed in both wicketkeeper and batsman roles whenever he got the chance. He is definitely in the selection committee's eyes for limited overs cricket as well.

Tremendous competition for the leg spinner

There can be a serious discussion in the selection committee meeting about who will play the role of leg spinner in the Indian team for the Champions Trophy. Kuldeep Yadav will have to give a fitness test soon and if he is not fit, then either Varun Chakravarthy of Tamil Nadu or Ravi Bishnoi of Gujarat can get a chance. Both of them have strengthened their claim by performing well in T20 international cricket. The head coach of the Indian team is also well aware of the skills of both of them. Chakravarthy was a part of the team when the coach was associated with Kolkata Knight Riders. Bishnoi used to play for that team when the coach was the mentor of Lucknow Super Giants.