Harbhajan Singh Excludes Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja from India's Champions Trophy Squad in Bold Predictions

Harbhajan, known for his outspoken nature, firmly believes that Sanju Samson deserves the spot as the wicketkeeper-batter over Rishabh Pant in the squad.

"I think one among Sanju Samson or Rishabh Pant should be picked. I feel Sanju should be preferred because he had played in South Africa. Rishabh played well in Australia, but it was a long tour, so if he is rested, it's not a big thing," Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.

Samson has already pipped Pant in the pecking order for T20Is with his recent exploits with the bat. After Rohit Sharma retired from T20Is, Sanju grabbed the opportunity with both hands. While opening for India in the shortest format of cricket, he showed his class against Bangladesh on home turf with a century. The wicketkeeper batter then went on to etch his name in the history book by becoming the first batter to tonk three centuries in T20Is in a calendar year.

‘I have chosen Axar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja’

Meanwhile, Harbhajan made another bold prediction of picking Axar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja, who has been a mainstay in India's ODI set-up for the past few years. Jadeja, an all-rounder who has delivered in all spectrums of the game for years, is now facing a scenario where he could be axed from the squad. With the recent surge of Axar Patel, there is a high chance that only one out of the two could be on the plane to Dubai.

"I have chosen Axar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja. I think Axar is ready to fulfil the role that Jadeja has done for so many years," he added.

Stay informed with the latest updates on live cricket score, cricket players, match schedules and ICC rankings. Keep an eye on your favourite cricket team, including the stellar performances of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Check out the cricket schedule, WTC 2025 Points Table track team standings and dive into player stats and rankings on Crickit powered by Hindustan Times website and app. .freemium-card h4{color:#fff; padding-bottom:20px;} .freemium-card .freemium-content .subcTxt{padding-bottom:16px; color:#fff;} .freemium-card .freemium-content{width: auto; max-width: inherit;} .freemium-card .freemium-content .subcTxt{max-width:inherit; font-size:18px; padding-top:0; line-height:24px} .freemium-card .btnSubc{margin} .freemium-card .btnSubc a{background:#000; color:#fff; min-width:auto; padding:5px 15px; border-radius:6px; font-size:16px; line-height:22px; font-weight:700;} .freemium-card{height:285px} @media (max-width: 767px) { .freemium-card h4{font-size:28px} .freemium-card .freemium-content{max-width:360px; padding: 20px;} .freemium-card{height:303px; background-position: 100% 0; } }