ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Mohammad Amir humiliates India, predicts embarrassing group stage exit
Published - 19 Feb 2025, 06:39 PM | Updated - 19 Feb 2025, 11:34 PM
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The Rohit Sharma-led India National Cricket Team is all set to kick off their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 campaign against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team on Thursday (February 20) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai, UAE.
Ahead of India’s first game in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistani cricketers Mohammad Amir and Ahmed Shehzad have made bold yet shocking predictions about their fate in the tournament. They felt India didn’t have any chances in the event without Jasprit Bumrah.
Did India make a big blunder by selecting five spinners?
Jasprit Bumrah was ruled out of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025 due to a back injury. Young Delhi pacer Harshit Rana has been named as Bumrah’s replacement for the marquee event along with another young pace gun, Arshdeep Singh.
The Men in Blue have only one experienced campaigner in Mohammed Shami, while they picked five spinners, raising concerns about the balance of the squad. India has only three pace bowling specialists in Rana, Shami, and Arshdeep, and Hardik Pandya will ease their work in the middle.
But they surprisingly picked five spin options Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, and Varun Chakravarthy are assuming Dubai’s pitches will favor spin, but conditions could change, especially during the chase, and that’s where this call will backfire.
There are high chances of the presence of dew that might make the ball skid, making spinners ineffective and making batting easier for the opposition. And in such a situation, India would need an extra fast bowler in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Mohammad Amir and Ahmed Shehzad predict India's early exit from ICC Champions Trophy
Meanwhile, speaking on a Pakistani talk show 'Haarna Mana Hai,' Mohammad Amir predicted that the Indian cricket team might make a group exit from the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy. With Jasprit Bumrah's absence and Mohammed Shami’s rustiness, Mohammad Amir said that India's pace attack is vulnerable, and that’s why he had doubts whether they could progress to the knockouts.
On the other hand, Ahmed Shehzad, who was also part of the discussion along with Amir, acknowledged the impact of Bumrah’s absence, saying fast bowlers would be crucial in Dubai’s conditions. However, Shehzad is confident that the Men in Blue can handle pressure and reach the semifinals alongside Pakistan.
India will face Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand in group stage
After facing the Tigers in their tournament opener on Thursday, the Men In Blue will face Pakistan in a high-voltage encounter on February 23. Their final group-stage match is against New Zealand on March 2. Rohit Sharma and his team will play all their Champions Trophy 2025 matches at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai, UAE.
The Indian team will have to win at least two out of their three matches to secure a semifinal spot in the ongoing Champions Trophy. They last won the Champions Trophy in 2013 under MS Dhoni’s captaincy while they were runners-up in the last edition of the mega event in 2017.
