Australia Pacer Withdraws From Champions Trophy; New Captain Revealed

Australia didn’t enjoy the last week with several injuries before the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They have already lost their captain, Pat Cummins, and lanky pacer, Josh Hazlewood, for the 50-over event.

The current ODI World Champions will also be without their all-rounder, Mitchell Marsh, alongside Marcus Stoinis, who retired from the ODI format a few days ago. With the absence of five experienced players from the World Cup squad, Australia will be worried about the pressure situation.

Mitchell Starc pulls out from Champions Trophy 2025

The left-arm premier pacer, Mitchell Starc, has withdrawn from the Champions Trophy for personal reasons. His absence means they will be without their winning frontline pace attack for the tournament, which starts on February 19.

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The 35-year-old has asked for some privacy around his decision. But he looked in some discomfort during the latter stage of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Galle. He finished the two games with six wickets, but the veteran of 244 wickets in 127 ODI innings at an average of 23.40 will be a huge miss for the side.

“We understand and respect Mitch's decision. Mitch is deeply respected for his commitment to international cricket and the priority he places on performing for Australia.” The chairman of the selection committee, George Bailey, expressed in a statement.

“His well-documented ability to play through pain and adversity, as well as forgoing opportunities in other parts of his career to put his country first should be applauded. His loss is a blow for the Champions Trophy campaign but does provide an opportunity to someone else to make a mark on the tournament.” The former Australian captain reckoned.

Starc was the eighth leading wicket-taker of the ODI World Cup 2023 in India, where he bagged 16 scalps in 10 innings at an average of 33 and a strike rate of 32.62, with the best bowling figure of 3/34 in an inning.

Adam Zampa will now be the most valuable bowler for the side in the tournament. The leg spinner was the second-highest wicket-taker in the 2023 event, with 23 scalps in 11 innings at an average of 22.39, thanks to three four-wicket hauls.

Steve Smith to lead Australia in Champions Trophy

Steve Smith will replace Cummins as the new leader of the side after leading Australia to a 2-0 Test series victory in Sri Lanka after nearly 14 years.

Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Jake-Fraser McGurk, Spencer Johnson, and Tanveer Sangha have joined the 15-member group, while Cooper Connolly will be a traveling reserve. JFM can provide the side an option at the top order, while Johnson will be the like-for-like replacement of Starc for the left-arm angle.

Abbott celebrated 29 wickets in 26 innings in the ODI format at an average of 39.37 and a strike rate of 41.1. Many raised their eyebrows when the Windsor-born didn’t feature in the original squad.

“The squad has changed significantly over the past month on the back of some untimely injuries and the retirement of Marcus Stoinis. The upside of that is that we have been able to call on players who have had international exposure and success over the past 12 months.” Bailey highlighted.

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“A strong core of some of our most experienced players will provide a strong foundation in our attempt to win this edition of the Champions Trophy. We have a range of options to shape the playing XI within the tournament depending on the opposition and conditions we face.” He informed.

Australia’s Updated Squad For Champions Trophy 2025

Steve Smith (captain), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa.

Travelling reserve: Cooper Connolly.