On Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed a 15-member roster for the forthcoming Asia Cup 2025, with Suryakumar Yadav as captain and Shubman Gill as deputy. Notably, the absence of Shreyas Iyer became one of the most talked-about aspects of the team announcement. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar spoke to the media with Suryakumar, explaining why the in-form batsman was left out despite a great IPL 2025 season.
Shreyas Iyer’s exclusion was shocking given his recent performance.
In IPL 2025, the right-hander hit 604 runs at a strike rate of 175 to lead the Punjab Kings to the final and demonstrate his capacity to dominate in the game’s shortest format. However, Agarkar clarified that Iyer’s absence was not owing to poor form.
“Again no fault of his. Got to tell me who he can replace? At the moment, will have to wait for his chance,” Agarkar said at the press conference.
The chief selector stressed that the competition for the spot is extremely high, especially in the middle order, where India already has Suryakumar, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, and Jitesh Sharma.
Agarkar also spoke about the challenges of finalizing a balanced squad of just 15 players. He admitted that it was a tough call but mentioned that Abhishek Sharma’s all-around value gave him the upper hand.
“It’s unfortunate. With what Abhishek has done over the last year or so, plus he give us a bowling option is required. One of these guys was always going to miss out,” he added.
We felt we needed an extra batter in Rinku: Ajit Agarkar
For Washington Sundar, who also missed out on the main squad but is part of the reserves, Agarkar clarified that the selectors preferred an extra batter in Rinku Singh.
“He’s always be in the scheme of things. At the moment, we have two mystery spinners/wristspinners in Varun and Kuldeep, and Axar has been around for a while. When we need four spinners – he may always be in the mix. For now, we felt we needed an extra batter in Rinku. And you could only pick 15. If there were 16, maybe he could’ve been in,” the former pacer concluded.
India, eight-time Asia Cup champions, will begin their campaign against UAE on September 10 before facing Pakistan in a marquee clash at the Dubai International Stadium on September 14.
India’s 15-member Asia Cup squad:
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah
Reserves: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal
India
