Shreyas Iyer was ignored for Indian Test squad, while Karun Nair made his return after 8 years.
When the BCCI selection committee released the Indian Test squad on Saturday, former India opener Virender Sehwag was not pleased to see Shreyas Iyer left off.
In the red-ball format, Shubman Gill was appointed the new captain. Karun Nair returned to the national setup after more than eight years, and Rishabh Pant was appointed his deputy.
Despite the recent retirements of India's two batting mainstays, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, Shreyas Iyer, who frequently plays in One-Day Internationals and has been playing well in all forms over the past few months, was left out of the squad.
“Definitely. He doesn't get much credit for his captaincy. Manoj (Tiwary) said that Rishabh Pant didn't get captaincy because his IPL season hasn't been great. But Iyer has had a great season, he is also the captain. Why can't he play in Test cricket? He can definitely play all three formats,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
According to the former opener, India ought to have taken advantage of Iyer's form because the batter's aggressive style would have allowed the team to exert pressure on England while they were away.
“When you're in good form, it's good to take him to the tour because there are higher chances of him performing. I would want to see him in the Test team. If he keeps the same approach in Test cricket, it benefits the team. If you have 2-3 players like that, it sets fear in the opposition. England plays at 6-7 runs/over. If the Indian team even manages to play at 4-5 runs/over, they can put them under pressure,” said Sehwag.
Iyer persevered through the local circuit after being left off of the Indian Test team during the home series against England the previous year, and he was instrumental in Mumbai's 2023–24 Ranji Trophy title win. In addition to playing consistently for Team India in ODIs, he continued to represent the state team in the previous season.