Shreyas Iyer's exclusion from India’s Test squad for the England tour, has been the talk of the town lately, and Sourav Ganguly is the new entrant in a long list of critics.
Ganguly, in an interview with Revsportz, made it quite clear. “Shreyas has been playing at his best in the last one year, and should have been in this team. The last year has been fantastic for him. He isn’t the player who got left out. He is now scoring under pressure, taking responsibility, playing the short ball well. Although Test cricket’s different, I would have had him in this series to see what he can do,” he said.
The Telegraph Online reached out to Sourav Ganguly for a comment but he did not respond.
With Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma not in the picture for the Test series, Iyer seemed like an obvious pick to bolster India’s middle-order.
After all, the numbers didn’t just whisper, they screamed in his favour.
Iyer was a part of India’s middle-order during their last tour of England but was later dropped following concerns over his vulnerability to short-pitched deliveries. However, he answered critics with performances in ODIs and a stellar domestic season, proving his readiness across formats.
In the last one year, Iyer has pretty much had a dream run. He scored 480 runs at an average of 68.57 in the Ranji Trophy, helped Mumbai lift the Ranji Trophy, Irani Cup, and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
On the international stage, he was India’s top run-getter in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which India went on to win.
Iyer is King with Punjab
On top of all that, he led Punjab Kings to their first final in 11 years, only to fall just short.
This year, he racked up 604 runs in 17 matches at a blistering strike rate of 175, the highest among the top 10 scorers in the Orange Cap list.
Yet, despite the accolades, the runs and the comebacks, Iyer found no place in the red-ball squad.
Agarkar and his selection committee, however, were reportedly not too keen. According to Hindustan Times, Iyer’s name didn’t even spark much discussion as the selectors felt he still had areas to improve in red-ball cricket.
Mumbai League 2025
Currently, Iyer is leading the Mumbai Falcons in the Mumbai League 2025, where his team has already made it to the final.
With Kohli and Rohit missing, the Test batting burden now shifts to new captain Shubman Gill and vice-captain Rishabh Pant.
India may also experiment with players like Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair, or perhaps turn to seam-bowling all-rounders such as Shardul Thakur or Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Focus on Bumrah
Asked about India's chances in England, Ganguly said, “Yes, sure. We just need two things, batting well and [Jasprit] Bumrah remaining fit. We won in Australia, in Melbourne (2020-21), with a young batting line-up, having no [Virat] Kohli, no Rohit Sharma. So, I do not see why we cannot win.”
On Shubman Gill’s promotion as Test captain, Ganguly offered support but a dose of realism too. “I am sure he can work on his Test match batting. He is a top-order batsman. He is the key senior member, captain, so as I said, he’s also got to fight in these conditions. These are not conditions where you just hit through the line. It’s going to seam, swing, new ball will be different. There can be time when India is 10 for 2, and he has to come and play the new ball, so the application will be different. So, these conditions will test them and make them too.”
From leading Punjab to an IPL final to topping India’s batting charts across formats, Shreyas Iyer may have done everything short of walking on water. But as things stand, he’ll be watching India’s Test campaign from the sidelines.
