New Delhi [India], September 9 : Former leg-spinner Amit Mishra believes Shreyas Iyer's perplexing snub from India's Asia Cup squad was driven by the tactical ploy of maintaining a right and left combination in the middle order in the batting unit.
Since being dropped from the BCCI's central contract list for 2024, Shreyas has dazzled on the field. Armed with his prolific form, he led Punjab Kings to the IPL 2025 final, the franchise's first in the last decade.
After a terrific 604-run season at 50-plus average in the cash-rich league, Shreyas made a compelling case for himself to be one of the names to pop up on the 15-member list. He was bypassed from the Indian team and even from the travelling reserves, triggering outrage among fans and former cricketers.
While former cricketers and fans have questioned the management's choice, Mishra identified a tactical framework that worked against Iyer's inclusion in the squad. Since the 30-year-old features in the number three or four spot, the urge to maintain the left-right combination conspired against Iyer, according to Mishra.
"I think Shreyas bats at number three or four; the team management would have thought that the combination between lefty and righty would have been better. The Asia Cup is a long tournament. I think Shreyas got stuck in the lefty-righty combination," Mishra said while speaking exclusively to ANI.
Even after being axed from the highly anticipated tournament, Mishra is 100 per cent assured about Iyer's return in future. Mishra sees there are plenty of series where Iyer can prove his mettle and earn his spot back in the team.
"There are many upcoming series. He has a lot of time. I'm 100 per cent sure that he will return. Maybe that's why he is not in the team. I don't think he is out of the team because of his form. New players need chances. I think he will come back in the future. I think he will make his place," he added.
Team India squad for Asia Cup: 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. Reserve players: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal.
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