Joe Root named in England's Champions Trophy squad, Ben Stokes misses out

England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced the squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and India tour on Sunday, December 22. Star batter Joe Root has returned to the ODI setup for the first time since the ODI World Cup 2023. However, all rounder Ben Stokes has missed out from the 15-member squad following a left hamstring injury sustained during the third Test match against New Zealand earlier this month.

The ECB medical team will continue to assess the extent of Stokes’ injury as the all rounder will miss the tournament after coming out of his retirement for the ODI World Cup 2023. Jos Buttler will continue to lead both the ODI and T20I teams having recently made his return to the team in the West Indies tour following an injury.

The entire squad will leave for India on 17th January where they will play five T20Is beginning from January 22 followed by three ODIs set to begin from February 6. The ODI



series will act as the final preparation for both teams for the ICC Champions Trophy.

Meanwhile, the schedule for the Champions Trophy is yet to be out as the ICC (International Cricket Council) is yet to decide a neutral venue for the event where India will play their matches after their reluctance to travel to host country Pakistan. However, the tournament is set to be held from the fourth week in February 2025 and will go on until the second week of March. England were knocked out in the semi-final of the last edition of the tournament on their home soil by the eventual champions Pakistan and hence will be eager to win the upcoming edition of the event.

England squad for India ODIs and Champions Trophy 2025: Jos Buttler (Captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Jamie Smith, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Saqib Mahmood, Phil Salt, Mark Wood