Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra feels Shreyas Iyer should be part of the upcoming Asia Cup squad, but raised questions about whether the batter would get his chances in the playing XI. The renowned commentator noted that Iyer was absolutely brilliant with the bat for the Punjab Kings in IPL 2025.
Iyer scored 604 runs in 17 matches at an average of 50.33 and a blistering strike rate of 175.07. Ergo, he played an instrumental role in taking PBKS to the final of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Iyer’s last T20I for India came back in December 2023 when he scored a half-century (53 off 37) against Australia.
“That is a phenomenal question. No one is answering this question and everything else is being spoken about. Of course, you want him to play. Indian cricket’s beauty is that it has a lot of talent. So many people look ready that if someone were to play, he would change the game. Shreyas Iyer can do that,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel when asked about Iyer’s selection in the Asia Cup.
Chopra highlighted that Iyer’s performance was brilliant in IPL 2025, barring the matches against eventual champions RCB.
“If you see his recent IPL performance, he came after sorting out his short-ball problem. He has opened up his stance a little and started hitting very well towards midwicket and long-on. If you leave aside the RCB matches, he has been absolutely outstanding. He took the team to the final,” he added.
The renowned commentator said India’s top four is sealed with Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Suryakumar Yadav.
“However, the truth is also whether a place is there. Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav are already doing well. How will you move any of them? The truth is that when Tilak asked Surya to play him at No. 3, he was played and he scored two hundreds. Surya lost his place. They were flip-flopping between them. So there is no place till No. 4,” he observed.
The former Delhi cricketer said it won’t be easy for Iyer to break into India’s playing XI as all players have performed consistently.
“Should Shreyas Iyer be there for No. 5 because we want to play Hardik at No. 5? There is Nitish Kumar Reddy as well, and we don’t know what would happen to Rinku Singh down the order. No one has made any mistake,” he said.
“If you don’t want to include Shubman Gill or Yashasvi Jaiswal, the same thing might apply to Shreyas Iyer as well. I know it looks a little unfair, but you need to wait for your time. He might come in the 15, but should Shreyas not play if he is part of the team? He is not the one to be made to sit on the bench,” Chopra observed.
India’s Asia Cup squad will be announced on August 19.
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