Team India have been dealt a major blow ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, with ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah being ruled out of the showpiece tournament due to a lower back injury.

While Bumrah was named in India’s preliminary squad for the Champions Trophy, he failed to make the cut in the final squad which was announced on Sunday (February 11) night.

Amid the setback, India head coach Gautam Gambhir has expressed confidence in "world-class" Mohammad Shami and other fast bowlers to rise to the occasion.

In the lead-up to the upcoming Champions Trophy, India whitewashed England in the three-match ODI series at home. The Men in Blue will now open their CT campaign on February 20 against Bangladesh at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

"If he's injured, he's injured, whether it's me, whether it's the captain, we can't do much about it," Gambhir told reporters.

"Obviously, we know that he's an important factor. But as I mentioned, people like Harshit (Rana), Arshdeep (Singh), Mohammad Shami, all these guys will put their hand up. It's a great opportunity for them to try and deliver for the country."

Pacer Harshit Rana made his ODI debut in the series and returned with six wickets in three games. Left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh claimed two wickets in his lone appearance in the series at Ahmedabad.

The series also marked Shami’s comeback to the ODI format after 14 months. He was out of action due to injury ever since India's 2023 World Cup final loss to Australia.

"Look, it's always good to have a world-class bowler back," said Gambhir. "With his experience, with his quality, we all know what he can do with the ball in his hand."

While Shami took five wickets in four white-ball games (two T20Is and ODIs each) against England, he bowled for extended periods of time with accuracy and speed.

"Obviously, we were trying to manage his workload," said Gambhir. "That's the reason why we played him two T20s and two one-dayers. Hopefully, he's going to be fresh and ready to go in the Champions Trophy."