Last Updated:
Shreyas Iyer was left out of India’s Asia Cup T20 squad despite scoring 604 runs for Punjab Kings in IPL 2025, sparking debate led by Sanjay Manjrekar on selection logic.
Shreyas Iye recently led PBKS to their first IPL final in 11 years. (PTI Photo)
Shreyas Iyer has become the cause of debate in Indian cricket circles after being left out of the squad for the upcoming Asia Cup T20, despite enjoying one of his most prolific seasons in franchise cricket. The 30-year-old batter scored 604 runs in 17 matches for the Punjab Kings in IPL 2025, averaging 50.33 with a staggering strike rate of 175.
Yet, Iyer failed to make India’s squad as well as the list of five reserves. Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has taken note and decided to voice his opinion on the matter on social media.
What Did Manjrekar Say About Shreyas Not Being Picked?
Manjrekar argued that selectors continue to blur the lines between formats by rewarding players for performances in one format while ignoring specialists in another.
“It’s something I’ve seen over the years, not just recently: this tendency of selectors to pick a player based on performances in one format, where that person excelled, and then picking him for another format. When I see a player getting rewarded for his Test match performances by being placed in the T20 side, I just find that devoid of cricketing logic. It just doesn’t make any sense,” Sanjay Manjrekar said on Instagram.
“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 at-home ODI series against England, the way he batted, you could see that he was just batting like he had never batted before.”
He went on to recall how Iyer had previously been dropped from the Indian setup due to concerns about his commitment to domestic cricket. However, that setback spurred him on, and his comeback in the home ODI series against England was marked by refreshing intent and consistency. Highlighting Iyer’s exceptional numbers, Manjrekar insisted that very few batters have managed to combine a strike rate of over 170 with an average above 50 across an entire season.
“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 an average over 50, a strike rate over 170, and being the game-changer in the side with the bat. And he gets rewarded with non-selection,” he said.
“So, when you do that to a player who has put in one of the best performances ever in the last few months in a format for which the Indian team is being selected, and you leave him out of that format, that’s for a guy who has excelled in a completely different format: Test cricket. Pick a guy who’s done well in T20 cricket, and not just because somebody has done so well in Test cricket gets rewarded with a T20 place, especially at the cost of somebody like Shreyas Iyer,” he added.
Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket content, ha…Read More
Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes on cricket content, ha… Read More
Read More
