The youngster has proven himself in Tests and T20Is
Yashasvi Jaiswal was an easy pick for India for the Champions Trophy 2025 squad. The left-hander was in stunning form in the Border Gavaskar Trophy scoring 391 runs from 10 innings, including a hundred and two fifties at an average of 43.44. The maturity of the 23-year-old was admirable in the hostile conditions Down Under as he was up to the task against world-class bowling and even matched the Australians in verbal duels.
He was also part of India U19 team’s run into the final in the 2020 U19 World Cup with a sensational tally of 400 runs in just six games at an average of 133. The final in Potchefstroom, strangely remains Jaiswal’s last 50-over game in Indian colors.
The selectors’ faith in the youngster is not misplaced as he also boasts of 1,511 runs from 32 List-A matches at an average of 53.96. However, the conundrum for India in the Champions Trophy is finding a suitable position for Jaiswal to play.
The 23-year-old is a natural opener and has played in the position across formats across different tournaments. He has occasionally played at No.3 for Mumbai but it was only during situations that needed him to.
India, meanwhile, has picked Shubman Gill and captain Rohit Sharma for the Champions Trophy who are the first-choice opening pair. Over the last two years, the duo have opened the innings on 25 occasions and have put up five 100-plus stands. In 11 of those matches, they have managed to add 50-plus scores.
It was a similar situation when Jaiswal was picked for the 2024 T20 World Cup squad but didn’t get to play because of seniors staking claim to the top two slots.
Throughout his career Jaiswal has never played below No.3 as he is most effective there. He has the ability to play long innings as he has showcased multiple times in the last two years, be it in the IPL, T20Is or in Tests.
However, he is usually the aggressor in any partnership, always looking to find the boundary rope. This ability can be used by the team to send him down the order but it is a gamble no team has ever taken with the southpaw.
India had gone with some bold decisions under Gautam Gambhir, most recently in the Border Gavaskar Trophy by dropping Rohit Sharma for the fifth Test in Sydney. But it was a one off when things looked too drab for the skipper. The likes of Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli were still there in the Playing XI and Jaiswal’s form made him indispensable.
That’s not the case in ODIs as Rohit is still a force of nature in the format with too many accomplishments to his name. His tiny blip in the series against Sri Lanka aside, Rohit has always scored 500-plus in ODIs in every year he has played 15 matches or more.
Shubman Gill’s promotion to vice-captain means there is extra responsibility on his shoulders to perform in the Champions Trophy. Despite his recent Test slump, it is tough to pip Gill in the ODI team. The Punjab batter played only three ODIs in 2024, but will look to his phenomenal numbers from 2023. He had scored 1,584 runs from 29 matches at an average of 63 that year underlining his importance.
There is also the case of teams following a set combination during the course of an ICC tournament and India are not exclusive to the formula.
The middle-order bunch is a narrow space to fit Jaiswal. The likes of Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya are the safest combination while the keeper-batter slot will be reserved for Rishabh Pant or KL Rahul. This means Jaiswal’s inclusion in the Playing XI has to arise from necessity rather than chance.
Gambhir has shown that no one will be given preferential treatment with the Australia series but being bold in his first ICC tournament as a coach might not happen. Even if Jaiswal doesn’t play a single game in the tournament, there is enough evidence that he is the future top-order player for India across all formats.
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, Arshdeep Singh.
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