Ajit Agarkar on Shreyas Iyer: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, starting on September 9 in the UAE. The team will be led by Suryakumar Yadav, with Shubman Gill named as the vice-captain.
The biggest talking point from the announcement was the exclusion of Shreyas Iyer, who was in outstanding form during IPL 2025. Despite his impressive performance, the selectors decided to go with a mix of young talents and experienced players to create a balanced squad.
Ajit Aagarkar on Shreyas Iyer: Iyer’s Omission Surprises Many
Iyer’s omission from the squad was surprising considering his recent form. The right-handed batsman had scored 604 runs at a strike rate of 175 in IPL 2025, leading Punjab Kings to the final and proving his ability to dominate in the shortest format of the game. However, Agarkar clarified that Iyer’s absence was not due to poor form.
However, chief selector Ajit Agarkar clarified that Iyer’s exclusion was not because of poor form. Speaking at the press conference alongside Suryakumar Yadav, Agarkar said:
“It is not his fault either. Who can he replace in this squad? At the moment, we had to make tough calls, and unfortunately, he missed out.”
Agarkar also explained that players like Abhishek Sharma and Rinku Singh were preferred because they provide additional options. Abhishek contributes with the ball as well, while Rinku’s recent performances in the middle order made him hard to ignore.
Agarkar said, “He has always been in the team’s plan. At the moment we have two mystery spinners in the form of Varun and Kuldeep and Axar has been in the team for some time now. When we need four spinners, he will always be in the team. At the moment we felt that we needed an extra batsman in the form of Rinku. And you can only pick 15. If there were 16, he would probably be in the team.”
India’s Squad for Asia Cup 2025
The 15-member squad features two wicketkeepers — Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma — while Jasprit Bumrah leads the pace attack. India also included mystery spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav, along with all-round options like Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, and Axar Patel.
India’s 15-member squad:
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah.
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