Abhishek Nayar cracked whip at Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for overlooking Shreyas Iyer in India's squad for Asia Cup 2025. Former India's assistant coach stated that snubbing Shreyas Iyer from the 15-member squad raises serious questions about the selection process. Notably, the 25-year-old is not even in the five reserves named for Asia Cup.
Abhishek Nayar questions selection process after India's Asia Cup squad announcement
While taking an aim at BCCI's Asia Cup squad selection during a discussion on Star Sports, Nayar said that he is unable to understand the justification for Iyer's exclusion in a 20-member squad, including the reserves. What surprises Nayar the most is, it all came despite Iyer's sensational form in Indian Premier Leauge. Iyer's leadership has been remarkable, he led the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to an IPL title in 2024 and then guided Punjab Kings (PBKS) to their first IPL final in over ten years. Throughout these campaigns, he was a consistent and key contributor with the bat.
Despite his strong performances, Iyer has not been selected for the T20I side since December 2023, when he scored a half-century against Australia. He was notably absent from the 2024 T20 World Cup squad and has now been left out of the Asia Cup roster as well.
"I wanted to ask that question - how is he not even in the reserves if he's such a strong contender?. Sometimes, selection meetings can be quite interesting, and the discussions even more so. But I genuinely can't understand what justification there could be for not including Shreyas Iyer in a 20-member squad."
While Nayar conceded that selectors consider many factors, he hinted that personal preferences might be influencing the decision-making process.
"Any selection, after a while, comes down to who you prefer a little more than the other. In that regard, maybe Shreyas Iyer is not liked as much as someone else. Maybe," he added.
India will kick off their campaign against USA on September 10 before locking horns with Pakistan on September 14 and Oman on September 19.
India’s squad for Asia Cup:
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh
Standby players: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel