File photo of Jasprit Bumrah
The Indian team gears up for a thrilling adventure in Dubai as the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 campaign gets underway. While India have some of the finest batters in the world for the marquee event, they do seem to be short on bowling firepower. The absence of Jasprit Bumrah, who hasn’t recovered since sustaining a back injury on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, is bound to hurt the team but former India opener Shikhar Dhawan is confident to see other players stepping up.
Rookie pacer Harshit Rana was picked as a replacement for Bumrah after the latter was ruled out. Though Rana only made his ODI debut in the recently concluded series against England, his skills with the ball, especially in white-ball cricket, have impressed many in the Indian cricketing spectrum.
“My concern is they are going to miss Jasprit Bumrah, there is no doubt he will be a big absence and I think they will feel it very strongly. For me, he is the best bowler in the world, and his accuracy is hard to replicate. He is also a very calm character and that is crucial in a huge ICC event like this,” Shikhar Dhawan wrote in his column for the ICC.
“At the same time, Harshit Rana has come into the side and I think that is really exciting – keep an eye on him, I think he could have a breakout tournament,” he added.
In the last couple of months, Harshit has gone on to represent India in all three formats. Dhawan feels he can bring the required x-factor to the Indian team in Dubai.
“I like his attitude, he is a go-getter and he is not afraid of anything. He accepts challenges and we have seen in the England series that he is in form. I am sure he will look to seize this opportunity and, if he does, he could provide a real x-factor for India,” said Dhawan.
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