The absence of some of the leading stars of different teams may rob the forthcoming ICC Champions Trophy cricket tournament of its glamour. Will it affect the standard of the competition too? That scenario cannot be ruled out. Let us take a look at the teams and the big names who will be absent from the event.
India will be without its attacking spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. Furthermore, Mohammed Siraj who is one of India’s leading bowlers has been dropped by the selectors for unexplained reasons.
According to former batting legend Dilip Vengsarkar, Jasprit Bumrah’s absence will leave a void that will be difficult to fill. “Bumrah is a great bowler and he can bowl his second spell with the old ball just as well as his first spell. We need a bowler like him. He will be badly missed,” Vengsarkar told the media recently.
Top Aussie players absent
Apart from India, there is Australia, which will have many of its top players absent. All its top fast bowlers will not be playing due to various reasons.
Skipper Pat Cummins, one of the most experienced fast bowlers in the side, injured his ankle and will not play in the Champions Trophy. His fellow fast bowler Mitchell Starc has withdrawn due to personal reasons. The tall pacer Josh Hazelwood suffered injuries in the series against India and will be missing too.
All-rounder Mitchell Marsh is down with lower back pain and will not be seen in action and the other big name missing from the Aussie lineup is Marcus Stoinis. He made a surprise announcement just a few days ago that he has decided to quit playing in the ODI format.
In the absence of these big stars, Australia has named Steve Smith as its captain. But Smith will be leading a new team and it remains to be seen how well these players will coordinate and fight as a cohesive unit.
Other teams affected too
Now for the other teams; Pakistan will be missing its promising young opener, Saim Ayub. The 22-year-old batsman injured his right ankle during a Test match against South Africa recently and has not yet recovered. He is currently undergoing treatment in the UK.
New Zealand will be without Lockie Ferguson while Rachin Ravindra’s fate is uncertain. He was struck on the head while fielding against Pakistan on February 8, in the ongoing tri-series, and did not play New Zealand’s next game on February 10. New Zealand will be hoping that he becomes fully fit soon. But there is an element of uncertainty in his case.
It is learned that some South African and England players are facing injury problems too and these teams are now on tenterhooks about the fitness of their key players.
Afghanistan is not a big team but it is capable of pulling off upsets now and then against the stronger rivals. But even Afghanistan has two good players on the injury list. The most important missing name is that of Mujib ur Rehman. The 23-year-old off-spin bowler is a key member of the bowling attack.
Another young player, 18-year-old Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar is also on the injured list. In November 2024, Mumbai Indians had acquired Ghazanfar for a sum of 4.80 crores for the 2025 IPL so that indicates this youngster has great potential. But this year he will not be in action at the Champions Trophy.
Publicity blitz by organisers
So the question now is what will be the level of competition that we will see in the matches? The host country Pakistan has launched a publicity blitz to add popularity and glamour to the tournament.
The official theme song for the event titled Jeeto Baazi Khel Ke performed by the well-known singer Atif Aslam was released on 7th February 2025 and five days later the ICC appointed several former cricketers of Pakistan, India, New Zealand, and Australia to help in the marketing of the tournament. But it remains to be seen how well the competition will pan out.
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