'Selectors don't see him...': India great questions Shreyas Iyer's absence from the squad for England Tests

Despite his stunning performance for India in the Champions Trophy and in the IPL for Punjab Kings, Shreyas Iyer didn't find a place in the Men in Blue's 18-member squad for the upcoming five-match England Test series. Though the 30-year-old hasn't featured for India in red-ball cricket since February, 2024, many believed that this would be the perfect time for him to return to the format, however that didn't end up happening.

Ahead of India's Test series against England which is set to commence from June 20, former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh raised questions over Iyer's exclusion from the squad and stated that it is likely that the selectors do not consider him as a red-ball player.

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“Shreyas Iyer is a very fine player. He's proven himself in ODIs, performed in the World Cup, Champions Trophy, and IPL. So yes, he should've been in the squad. But maybe the selectors don't see him as a red-ball player right now,” Harbhajan said on the launch of Vidarbha Cricket League.

“If I were part of the selection committee, I would have considered him. But this is not the end — his journey is long, and he might even be a future ODI captain. One missed tour doesn't mean his career is over," he added.

Harbhajan believes that the England tour will be quite challenging for Indian team

Harbhajan also remarked that the upcoming tour will be quite challenging for the Indian team especially due to the absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, both of whom shocked the cricketing world by announcing their retirements from the longest format. However, he also expressed faith on India's youngsters that have been selected in the 18-member squad for the series.

“Gill is a new captain, and the team is quite young — there's no Rohit, Virat, Pujara, or even Ajinkya Rahane. It's going to be challenging, but I expect our youngsters to rise to the occasion and perform well,” Harbhajan stated.

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Meanwhile, Iyer captained the Punjab-based franchise to the IPL 2025 final, but came up short against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who defeated them in the penultimate clash by six runs. The same fate ended up following the batter in the Mumbai T20 League as well where his side SoBo Mumbai Falcons suffered a heartbreaking defeat to the Mumbai South Central Maratha Royals in the final.