On January 18, India's squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the ODI series against England was announced. One of the notable omissions was pacer Mohammed Siraj who recently came under scrutiny after India's defeat in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. In the press conference, skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that he needs players who can play a certain role and that is the reason why they went with Arshdeep Singh ahead of Siraj as there is a question mark over Jasprit Bumrah's fitness.
“Only Siraj is not there (among experienced players). We are not sure of Bumrah and so we picked a squad where we had options of players who can bowl up front and at the back end. If Bumrah is not there, we wanted Arshdeep to do it. That is where we felt Siraj's effectiveness comes down when he is not taking the new ball. It is unfortunate he is missing out but we had to get guys who can perform a certain role. I feel we have players who can bowl with new ball, bowl in the middle and at the end,” Rohit told the reporters.
Bumrah is set to miss the first two ODIs of the series against England. Young pacer Harshit Rana is set to make his ODI debut against the Jos Buttler-led side. Siraj was not considered for the ODI series against England as well in Bumrah's absence.
Meanwhile, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) medical team is yet to give an update on Bumrah who suffered back spasm during the Sydney Test earlier this month.
"Bumrah has been told to off-load for five weeks after and he won't be available for the first two ODIs against England. We are waiting on his fitness and will know his status in early February from the medical team," Agarkar said ," Agarkar said in the press conference.
How Siraj fared in ODI series against Sri Lanka
Siraj who bagged a sensational six-fer in Asia Cup 2023 final against Sri Lanka was not at his best on the previous tour. He picked three wickets from three games. In the third and final ODI of the series, he conceded 78 runs from nine overs. He was way more expensive than others considering they were not batting-friendly wickets and the three ODIs witnessed low scores.
In the ODI World Cup 2023, Siraj was India's fifth-highest wicket-taker. He took 14 wickets from 11 ODIs at an average of 33.50. His economy rate was 5.68 runs per over.
Arshdeep's ODI record so far, recent run in Vijay Hazare Trophy
The left-arm pacer has played eight ODIs and claimed 12 wickets at an average of 24.08 including one five-wicket haul and one four-fer. He is also the highest wicket-taker in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25. From seven games, he picked up 20 wickets at an average of 18.25 including one fifer and two four-fers.