ICC Champions Trophy 2017, England
As the Champions Trophy enters its 8th edition, we welcome Bangladesh, who entered the tournament as the 7th ranked team. Unfortunately for them though, they are placed among Australia, England and New Zealand in the groups. Nevertheless, Bangladesh, along with 7 other teams will battle out in England over 15 matches.
One fails to find the difference between the World Cup and the Champions Trophy. After all, isn’t the beginning of the Champions Trophy like the quarterfinal stages of the World Cup! Champions Trophy fails to garner the attention it begs for. If anything, the Champions Trophy is just another tournament for South Africa to choke in, for New Zealand to make a mess of, for England to not win, for Australia to showcase their one-day prowess. Moreover, these days, it is one of the few source of India vs Pakistan dosage for the fans
For Indians, however, it is another opportunity to see M S Dhoni in India jersey. Amidst much drama and cry for attention, BCCI announced the 15-man squad to play the trophy. Realists argue that BCCI should have held its ground against ICC regarding the money model while sentimentalists want cricket to come first. Regardless of that, India will be in England to defend their title, albeit under a new captain. This brings me to Virat Kohli. For him, this is his first major tournament as a captain. Expect some team selection surprises, changes in strategies and approach to matches and probably even a different batting approach by Virat Kohli himself. Despite all this, the biggest challenge that India will face is to get the playing XI correct, right from the first match.
15 matches of what an enthusiast will enjoy, simply because there is no single unevenly matched encounter. Here is a roundup of all the 8 squads and schedule of the 8th ICC Champions Trophy to be played in England from the 1st of June.
- Australia
- Bangladesh
- England
- India
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- South Africa
- Srilanka
