Champions Trophy 2025 is set to make a return after a gap of 8 years, with the last season being held in 2017. The tournament is set to take place from 19 February and will have a total of 15 matches played in 19 days. The finals will take place on 9 March 2025.
The tournament will feature the top eight teams of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023, namely India, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Afghanistan, England and Bangladesh. These teams are divided into 2 groups, where one team will face the other three of the same group.
These teams feature some of the biggest names in the cricket world like Virat Kohli, Jos Buttler, Glenn Maxwell, and Babar Azam. But all eyes will also be on the young players who could prove their brilliance in the tournament. With the Champions Trophy making a comeback in less than 48 hours, let’s take a look at these young talents.
Jacob Bethell
Jacob Bethell is a 21-year-old English left-handed batter and a slow left-arm orthodox bowler. He made his international debut in the T20I series in 2024 against Australia. He became the youngest English player to score a half-century in a T20 international.
He scored the second-fastest fifty on his Test debut relating the half-century in just 37 balls. Recently, Royal Challengers Bengaluru picked him for the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the Mega auction. He is one of the most promising young players to take part in the Champions Trophy 2025.
Noor Ahmad
Noor Ahmad Is a left-arm unorthodox spin bowler from Afghanistan. He made his first-class debut at just 14 years old and also became the youngest player in the Big Bash League and the age of 15. He has also played in the ODI World Cup becoming the youngest debutant in World Cup history.
His best bowling figure in the ODI is 3 wickets for 49 runs. He has only appeared in 10 ODI matches and has taken 9 wickets. He was bought by Chennai Super Kings for the IPL 2025. He can turn out to be a threat to the batsman in the Champions Trophy 2025.
Harshit Rana
Harshit Rana is a promising Indian cricketer who plays for Delhi in domestic cricket and has represented Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. He has given a standout performance in the last season of the IPL, having taken 19 wickets in 13 matches with a bowling average of 20.16.
He originally is a replacement for Jasprit Bumrah who could not be a part of the Champions Trophy due to an injury. He’s got big shoes to fill and all eyes would be on him in the upcoming tournament.
Aaron Hardie
Aaron Hardie is an Australian international cricketer known for his right-handed all-rounding. He led his team to victory in the 2021-22 Sheffield Shield with an unbeaten score of 174. Aaron has played 13 ODI matches yet and scored a total of 166 runs and 10 wickets.
He recently put up a notable performance in the series against Sri Lanka and with the absence of some key players of the Australian squad, Hardie will have a significant role to play.
Also Read: Champions Trophy 2025: Prize Money Revealed
