India's middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer was dropped by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) annual central contracts announced on February 28. Iyer was not included after he didn't play a Ranji Trophy 2023-24 match after getting dropped for the last three Tests against England. Iyer complained of pain in his back but was cleared by National Cricket Academy (NCA). Along with Ishan Kishan who skipped all Ranji Trophy matches, Iyer did not get an annual contract as well. BCCI even mentioned in its press release that Kishan and Iyer were not considered for the annual contracts. Reacting to the news, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Chandrakant Pandit said that Iyer should have been there.
"I will not say Shreyas must be included in a certain Grade, but he is definitely a player who can serve India in any format. He has had an injury issue, but it was solved. He is a good performer and even scored a century [105 against New Zealand in 2021 at Kanpur] on Test debut. In our future series, there may be some players who will not be in form, so naturally, Shreyas will be there. He will play domestic cricket and can perform in the IPL. He is going to be useful for Indian cricket in any format," Pandit said in an interview with Mid Day.
Iyer’s snub left Pandit surprised
Pandit who is also Madhya Pradesh's coach said that he was left surprised when Iyer was left out but he feels that the snub will not affect him.
"It's surprising that Shreyas was not considered for the annual contracts, because he is India's all-format player. We don't know the reason, but I think he should walk into the pool of India's contracted players. He could have definitely fitted in any Grade. Knowing Shreyas, I don't think it will affect him. He will definitely fight and perform. He has that fighting spirit," he added.
Iyer to play Ranji Trophy semi-final
Iyer is likely to return to domestic cricket when Mumbai take on Tamil Nadu at their homeground in the Ranji Trophy 2023-24 semi-final starting March 2. Earlier, Iyer had played one Ranji game before the Test series against England where he scored 48 runs.
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