“I Can’t Believe This!” Ex-India Coach Furious Over Shreyas Iyer’s Asia Cup Omission
Ex-India coach Abhishek Nayar slams selectors for ignoring Shreyas Iyer in Asia Cup 2025 squad despite IPL 2025 heroics.
India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad was announced on Tuesday in Mumbai, but the omission of Shreyas Iyer has become the biggest talking point.
While Suryakumar Yadav continues as captain and Shubman Gill has been named vice-captain, Iyer has not found a place even among the standbys.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar admitted the decision was tough.
“With regards to Shreyas, not his fault, nor is it ours. It’s just that you can pick 15 and at the moment you’ll have to wait for his chance,” Agarkar said at the press conference.
Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar, however, expressed shock at Iyer’s absence.
“I can’t fathom or understand what reason could justify Shreyas Iyer not being part of the 20-member squad. I’m not even talking about the final 15, but the 20 itself, which sends a clear message that Shreyas Iyer is not in the selectors’ scheme of things, at least from a T20 perspective,” Nayar told JioHotstar.
Iyer’s exclusion comes despite a standout IPL 2025 season. Leading Punjab Kings, he scored 604 runs at a strike rate of 175 and guided them to the final in Ahmedabad. Many expected his form to secure him a recall, but the selectors went with a settled T20 core instead.
India’s Asia Cup 2025 Squad
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
The Asia Cup will be played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from September 9 to 28 in the T20 format. Eight teams will feature, including India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, UAE, Oman and Hong Kong.
India begin their campaign against UAE on September 10 in Dubai, followed by the marquee clash against Pakistan on September 14 at the same venue. Their final group game will be against Oman on September 19 in Abu Dhabi.
The Super Four stage will run from September 20 to 26, before the final on September 28 in Dubai.
