Since India announced a 15-man roster for the next Asia Cup in September, several members of the cricketing community have criticised some of the unexpected decisions made by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee. One of the most talked-about issues has been the absence of in-form Shreyas Iyer from the team. The Mumbai hitter has yet to secure a spot among the five reserve players chosen for the continental tournament.
Former India Test captain Ajinkya Rahane claimed Shreyas must be devastated after failing to make the Asia Cup squad despite constantly making runs for Mumbai and Punjab Kings in white-ball cricket.
“I’m sure he (Shreyas Iyer) must be really disappointed considering the kind of IPL he had. It was a fantastic season. Even in domestic cricket, especially in the 50-over format, he has performed really well whenever given opportunities. I can completely understand the team management’s point of view, since they can only pick 15 players and need to see the balance of the team,” Rahane said on his YouTube channel.
After picking the squad, chief selector Ajit Agarkar and captain Suryakumar Yadav addressed the press. The former India pacer was asked about the decision to leave Shreyas out of the side. He said that it was unfortunate that the Mumbai batter had to be left out, but the selectors only had to pick 15 players only, and they couldn’t fit him in.
“In terms of Shreyas, it’s again unfortunate. You tell me who he can replace in this squad. It’s not his fault, nor ours, it’s just that only 15 can be picked, and at the moment, he has to wait for his chances,” Agarkar explained.
Shreyas Iyer will be a part of the T20 format in the future: Ajinkya Rahane
Rahane believes that Shreyas will make a comeback to the T20 side in the near future. The 37-year-old hopes that the selectors have had clear communication with Shreyas about their plans involving him in T20 cricket.
“The only thing I want to see and I want to know is that a proper communication from selectors and team management with Shreyas. He’s an important member of the team and I’m sure in the coming years or in the future he’s going to be part of the T20 format as well. So communication is the key from the selectors to Shreyas Iyer,” he added.
Shreyas had a brilliant season for Punjab Kings in IPL 2025, as he amassed 604 runs from 17 matches at an average of 50.33 and a strike rate of 175.07. He became only the second captain to lead Punjab to the IPL final.
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