The non-selection of Shreyas Iyer for India’s upcoming Test tour of England has disappointed many in the Indian cricket fraternity, who believed that the Mumbai batter Shreyas Iyer had earned a spot in the Test team after a hot run of form across formats in recent months. Despite his importance to India’s triumphant ICC Champions Trophy campaign and excellent form across domestic, First-class and IPL cricket, Shreyas Iyer continues to be on the outside of India’s plans in Test cricket.
Shreyas Iyer last represented India in Test cricket last year when England had made their way to India. He was dropped after two Tests and has failed to be in contention ever since. From that point, Shreyas Iyer has done well for Mumbai as far as the domestic circuit is concerned. He registered 480 runs in seven innings in the 2024-25 edition of the Ranji Trophy.
BCCI overlooked Shreyas Iyer’s leadership potential
Shreyas Iyer was one of the players who was in-demand amongst fans and pundits to be on the tour of England despite his struggles against the red ball in SENA conditions, particularly due to his improvements in technique against the short ball, as well as the experience and the leadership quality he could bring to the table. In the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, both recently retired from Test cricket, this was seen as a must-have.
Nevertheless, despite his average of 68.57 in this prior season’s Ranji Trophy campaign as well as his streak of run-scoring in white ball for India and Punjab Kings, Shreyas Iyer missed out on Gautam Gambhir’s team yet again. This follows after he was removed from the BCCI’s central contract list in 2024, and although he was reinstated this year, his absence has caused a response from many within Indian cricket.
The right-handed batter Shreyas Iyer’s last Test match appearance for India came during the second Test against England in Vizag in 2024. After not being among the runs, he was dropped for the remaining three matches. Since then, as far as red-ball cricket is concerned, Shreyas Iyer has played in the Buchi Babu Invitational tournament, the Duleep Trophy, and the Ranji Trophy. He scored 480 runs in five matches for Mumbai in their Ranji semi-final run under Ajinkya Rahane
A major reason behind the right-handed batter not being considered is his concerning record outside of the subcontinent. In three Tests, the first of which came in England itself, he has scored only 75 runs in six innings at an average of 15. His last overseas red-ball outing came during the tour of South Africa in 2023-24, where he scored just four runs, which included a first-innings duck.
We are still days away from the start of the England tour, but the buzz is palpable. India head coach Gautam Gambhir finds himself in the middle of a controversy now. He recently said that he is not the selector when asked why Shreyas Iyer was not picked despite his good form. Former India cricketer Atul Wassan has now gone on to criticise Gambhir. Wassan says Gambhir does not select, he only rejects.
Gautam Gambhir only rejects- Shreyas Iyer
Former India cricketer Atul Wassan took a sly dig at head coach Gautam Gambhir’s comments regarding Shreyas Iyer’s non-inclusion in the Test squad for the England tour. The right-handed batter did not make the cut as the selection committee named an 18-man squad for the five-match series, which kicks off the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
Team India had a massive decision to make regarding their middle-order batters following Virat Kohli’s Test retirement. With the likes of Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara not in the scheme of things anymore amid transition, some bold calls needed to be taken. The selectors did not consider a recall for Shreyas Iyer, but instead chose to include Sai Sudarshan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Karun Nair as the extra batters.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar acknowledged Iyer’s performances in the domestic circuit, but remarked that there is no place in the team for him at the moment.
Yes, Shreyas Iyer had a good one-day series, has played well in domestic cricket, but at the moment, there is no room for him in the Test team,” Agarkar said during the squad announcement press conference (via Indian Express).
Gautam Gambhir was recently asked about Iyer’s exclusion as well, to which he only had a short and curt response.
“I am not a selector,” Gambhir told a reporter.
Atul Wassan said that coaches have a massive say in the final team selection since the selectors take the input before officially confirming the team members.
“He doesn’t select, he only rejects. The coach has a role in team selection, and selectors also listen to them before naming the squad,” Wassan said on Bails and Banter on the OTTplay app. (via Hindustan Times).
“If he (Gautam Gambhir) has been given this position, then I think he deserves to go with his feeling, whether it’s right or wrong,” he added.
Team India’s tour of England is set to begin with the series opener in Headingley, Leeds, on June 20. This will be Shubman Gill’s maiden assignment as the Test captain after taking over from Rohit Sharma. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer is currently featuring in the ongoing season of the IPL where he is leading the Punjab Kings. He led PBKS to top the group stage after the league matches, but unfortunately could not beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru to make it to the final in the first attempt
Punjab will now play Mumbai Indians for a spot in the final. It would be interesting to see how Punjab can turn things around in a couple of days after a confidence-crushing defeat against RCB.
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