Updated 23 August 2025 at 16:10 IST
Sanjay Manjrekar Sends No-nonsense Shreyas Iyer Message After Asia Cup Snub: 'Didn’t Put A Foot Wrong'
Shreyas Iyer hasn't been selected in the Asia Cup as the BCCI named a 15-member squad for the tournament, which will be played in the T20 format this time.
Shreyas Iyer's non-selection in the Asia Cup squad has triggered a lot of reactions. Suryakumar Yadav has been named the captain for the Asia Cup, while Shubman Gill will be his deputy for the tournament, which will be played in the T20 format this time.
Sanjay Manjrekar Lashes Out After Shreyas Iyer's Asia Cup Snub
Despite leading KKR to the 2024 IPL title, Iyer wasn't picked for the T20 World Cup squad. This time too, he led Punjab Kings from the front and, riding on his leadership and batting antics, Ricky Ponting's side defied all the odds and reached their first final since 2014, but they lost to RCB in a nail-biting game.
Iyer returned to the ODI squad against England and continued his form into the Champions Trophy, where he finished as the highest run scorer in the Champions Trophy, leading India to their 3rd title. Former Indian batter Sanjay Manjrekar feels Iyer's not making up to the Asia Cup squad was shocking.
On a video on his Instagram handle, he said, “Shreyas Iyer not making this T20 squad of India for the Asia Cup is just shocking. This is a guy who was left out of the Indian team for the right reason because they felt he wasn’t committing himself as much to domestic cricket. But it had the desired effect on Shreyas Iyer: when he came back again in the England at-home ODI series, the way he batted, you could see that he was just batting like he had never batted before."
Not only with leadership, Iyer was also impressive with his bat, churning out his best season in a single IPL campaign. He produced 604 runs in 17 matches at an average of 50.33 and a strike rate of more than 175. He finished as the 6th-highest run scorer in IPL 2025, further establishing his credentials as one of the best in the shortest format.
Manjrekar further added, “He didn’t put a foot wrong in that comeback series and then carried that form into IPL cricket. I don’t think any batter has had that kind of form throughout the IPL season, with the average over 50, strike rate over 170, and being the game-changer in the side with the bat. And he gets rewarded with non-selection."
India will start their Asia Cup campaign on September 10, followed by the high-voltage clash against Pakistan on September 14.
India’s Squad For Asia Cup 2025
Surya Kumar 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
Reserves: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel
Published By : Anirban Sarkar
Published On: 23 August 2025 at 16:10 IST