Champions Trophy 2025: Mitchell Starc out, Steve Smith to lead Australia

By our Special Correspondent

Pace spearhead Mitchell Starc has pulled out his name from the ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025 squad as Australia finalized their squad for the marquee event on Wednesday, February 12, 2025. After leading the Aussies to whitewash in the Test series against Sri Lanka, batting stalwart Steve Smith has been rewarded with ODI captaincy in the Champions Trophy.

          Earlier, Australia's head coach Andrew McDonalds had clarified that skipper Pat Cummins, Mitchell Marsh and Josh Hazlewood have been ruled out of the Champions Trophy 2025 due to injuries. Amid all this, despite being named in the squad, Marcus Stoinis announced his retirement from the 50-over format.