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Explained: Why Did BCCI Exclude Shreyas Iyer From India A Squad For England Tour?

Debashis Sarangi

Shreyas Iyer was excluded from IND-A team [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/X]Shreyas Iyer was excluded from IND-A team [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/X]

On Friday, the BCCI selection committee announced a formidable India-A squad for the upcoming unofficial Tests against England Lions. Led by Abhimanyu Easwaran, India-A will take on their English counterparts in three unofficial Tests before the senior team's face-off with England in a five-match Test series. 

Why Was Shreyas Iyer Ignored In India-A Team?

In a surprising move, the BCCI excluded Shreyas Iyer from the India-A squad for the three-match unofficial series against England Lions. Considering Iyer has performed admirably in the recent past, his absence in the A-team raised a million eyebrows. 

Here are some possible reasons why the selectors opted against picking Iyer in the India-A squad. 

Clash of IPL Playoffs With Unofficial Tests

  • Led by Shreyas Iyer, Punjab Kings are on the verge of qualifying for the IPL 2025 playoffs. In 11 IPL 2025 matches, PBKS have secured seven wins while losing only three matches. 
  • Thus, considering their prolific form, the Kings are expected to enter the playoffs that will clash with the unofficial Test series, starting on May 30. 
  • If PBKS qualify for the final, Iyer will have to stay with them till June 3. Thus, he could've potentially missed two out of three unofficial Test matches had he been included in the team. 
  • So, the BCCI selection committee has prioritised those players who are either inactive in the IPL or won't play in the playoffs due to their teams' elimination. Thus, there are several players from RR, SRH and CSK - Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Tushar Deshpande, Nitish Reddy, Ishan Kishan, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed and Harsh Dubey. 

Shreyas Iyer Not In India's Test Plans?

  • One may assume, that although Shreyas Iyer was not picked for the India-A team, he might walk straight into the senior side for the England Tests, starting on June 20. 
  • However, Iyer played his last Test back in February last year. In his previous 12 Test innings, the Mumbaikar has struck only 187 runs at a horrendous average of 17. 
  • This could be the reason why the BCCI isn't desperate to bring him back to Tests. While it has been explicitly mentioned that Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan, two top-order probables on the England tour, will join the A-side later, the BCCI's silence on Iyer somewhere points to his potential exclusion from India's Test setup for the time being. 
  • So, as it seems, the selectors have limited Iyer to the ODI setup, and they might take a call on his T20I future after the ongoing IPL season.