'Shreyas Iyer Should Have Been Selected Ahead Of...': Sourav Ganguly Makes Bold Statement

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has said that it is unbelievable how Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer didn’t find their places in the Asia Cup squad, adding that the latter should have been selected ahead of Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma in the 15-man squad.

In August, national selectors left Iyer out of the Asia Cup team. While the decision sparked another wave of online outrage, he was later named skipper of India A for two multi-day games against Australia A scheduled later this month.

Over the past two seasons, Iyer has strengthened his captaincy credentials, first guiding the Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL title last year and then taking the Punjab Kings to the final in 2025.

“I am surprised not to see Iyer in the Asia Cup squad.

Whenever I don’t see him in a white-ball squad, I am taken aback. He has played such brilliant innings in the IPL and has been a great captain,” Ganguly said while speaking to Anandabazar Patrika.

“You cannot omit Iyer from white-ball teams. He deserves a spot ahead of Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma. We have Sanju Samson as the wicketkeeper, so why would we still not bring in Iyer?” Ganguly threw a question for his former teammate Ajit Agarkar.

Although Punjab fell short of winning the trophy, Iyer’s leadership drew widespread praise, further cementing his reputation as a tactical captain.

Apart from his captaincy, Iyer’s batting development has been noteworthy. Even after racking up 604 runs in IPL 2025 at a stunning average of 50.33 and a strike rate of 175, his snub didn’t make sense to a lot of fans and former cricketers alike.

For example, Dhruv Jurel was picked as the backup wicketkeeper while Sanju Samson made the main team.

Earlier, Iyer was key for India in the middle overs at the 2025 Champions Trophy and was their top scorer with 243 runs in five innings at an average of 48.6.