Pakistan Rejects Political Selection Accusation; Takes Huge Call On Champions Trophy Squad

The start of the Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is just over a week away as all the teams have crossed the deadline of February 11 to make any changes to the original 15-member squad.

From now on, any changes in the squad will require consultation from the technical committee of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Australia, India, South Africa, and a few other sides made changes to the injuries.

No changes in Pakistan’s original Champions Trophy squad

Pakistan was the last side to name their 15-member squad for the eight-team tournament. Since then, a few questioned the participation of selective players in the mega event. The former players and the fans slammed the national selectors for picking the players on political influence.

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The reaction was mostly on Faheem Ashraf’s selection, who didn’t feature in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India due to bad form. His last international game in the ODI format came against India during the Asia Cup, a few months before the ICC tournament.

Ashraf has featured in 34 ODIs where he smashed 224 runs at a strike rate of 81.75 at the best score of 28 and picked up 26 wickets at an average of 46.30 and an economy rate of 5.18.

Khusdil Shah was another player on the squad who faced a lot of criticism. The 30-year-old displayed fine form during the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2024/25 season with 298 runs in eight innings at an average of nearly 60 and a strike rate of 175.29, thanks to two half-centuries at the best score of unbeaten 73 runs.

The southpaw has featured in 11 ODIs to club 214 runs at a strike rate of 93.85. A few reports claimed that the PCB reviewed the Champions Trophy 2025 squad, which fueled speculations about the changes. But, the board confirms that there will be no changes to the initial 15-member squad, as they aim to defend their title from the 2017 edition.

Pakistan sweats over Harif Rauf’s injury before Champions Trophy

It wasn’t a sweet moment for any fans when they saw the speedster, Haris Rauf, limping during an over and leaving the field during the clash against New Zealand in the tri-series opener. Winning the toss at the Gaddafi Stadium, the Kiwis decided to bat first and lost their opener, Will Young, cheaply.

But the 95-run third wicket stand between Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell stabled them in the middle. Rauf collected the wicket of Tom Latham, who closed the bat face early in the innings and found Kamran Ghulam. None of the batters, apart from Fakhar Zaman, could stand long in their 331-run chase.

With the Kiwis winning their next clash against South Africa, it will be a do-or-die clash between Pakistan and the Proteas in Karachi for the tri-series, as the final will take place on February 14.

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The opening game for the Mohammad Rizwan-led side in the ICC event will be against the Blackcaps in Karachi before they make a trip to Dubai for the contest against India. On return to Rawalpindi, they will take on Bangladesh in their last group game of the tournament. Pakistan recently won three successive ODI series against Australia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.

Pakistan’s Updated Squad For Champions Trophy 2025

Mohammad Rizwan (C/WK), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Khusdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed.