3 capped Indians who were surprisingly on the bench for the first round of matches in IPL 2025

The first round of games in IPL 2025 gave a few clues as to how teams are looking at their squads. Here, we take a look at the list of three capped Indians who were surprisingly on the bench for the first round of matches in IPL 2025.

1) Washington Sundar

It was the case at SRH, too. Sundar did not see himself often in the playing XI. Now that his form has improved, he was expected to feature for the Gujarat Titans.

However, R Sai Kishore was preferred for the first game. It is also possible that Punjab Kings had many right-handers and Washi did not suit the matchup.

2) Karun Nair is one of the Indians surprisingly on the bench in IPL 2025

Karun Nair is one of the capped Indians who were surprisingly on the bench for the first round of matches in IPL 2025. KL Rahul was absent for the first game.

Many felt Karun Nair will replace him at least for this game. However, it was Sameer Rizvi who got the chance against LSG.

3) Rahul Chahar

The Indian leg-spinner was not in the playing XI for SRH’s first game against Rajasthan Royals. It was actually a big surprise.

It seems SRH needed the extra Indian batter and hence, they picked Aniket Verma. Adam Zampa was the lead spinner for the side.