'You cannot omit him from white-ball teams...': Sourav Ganguly left 'surprised' over this star's exclusion from India's Asia Cup squad

Legendary India captain Sourav Ganguly feels that it is 'surprising' how Shreyas Iyer wasn't picked in the side's 15-member squad for Asia Cup. When India's squad for the continental tournament was announced in August, many were left shocked that Shreyas failed to get a spot despite his sensational performance with the bat in IPL 2025 for the Punjab Kings (PBKS). Notably, he finished as the sixth-highest run-getter of the season with 607 runs under his name from 17 matches.

Over the last two IPL seasons, Shreyas has strengthened both his batting and captaincy skills as he first captained the Kolkata Knight Riders to the title in 2024 before carrying PBKS all the way to the final earlier this year.

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Ganguly remarked that Shreyas could have been given a place in the Asia Cup squad over Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma and also pointed out how the 30-year-old had played some terrific innings in the past few IPL seasons.

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“I am surprised not to see Iyer in the Asia Cup squad. Whenever I don’t see him in a white-ball squad, I am taken aback. He has played such brilliant innings in the IPL and has been a great captain," Ganguly said while speaking to Anandabazar Patrika.

“You cannot omit Iyer from white-ball teams. He deserves a spot ahead of Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma. We have Sanju Samson as the wicketkeeper, so why would we still not bring in Iyer?" he added.

Shreyas to captain India A

Meanwhile, Shreyas was recently appointed as India A's captain for the upcoming series against Australia A. He will be leading the side in a two-match unofficial Test series and a three-match one-day assignment. With the batter having already impressed with his leadership skills in IPL, it remains to be seen how he will perform as the skipper on the international circuit. This assignment will definitely be quite important for the 30-year-old and can help him make his way back into the India's Test set-up.

Meanwhile, India will be facing Pakistan next in Asia Cup 2025 on September 14. The Men in Blue started the tournament with a thumping 9-wicket victory over the hosts UAE and will be looking to maintain their fine form in the match against their arch-rivals.