'Definitely personal likes and dislikes' - Former India pacer's bold claim on Shreyas Iyer's Asia Cup snub

Experts have been critical of India's selection committee after the Ajit Agarkar-led panel decided to leave Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer out of the 15-man squad for the upcoming Asia Cup in September.

Former India pacer Atul Wassan feels that Yashasvi's snub is more baffling, as he was India's backup opener in the T20 World Cup last year, while Shubman Gill was among the reserves. However, they have swapped places for the Asia Cup, with the Punjab batter being appointed as the vice-captain. With the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from T20Is, Wassan struggled to find a reason behind Yashasvi's omission.

"Jaiswal should be more aggrieved. Why? Jaiswal was the third opener when India won the World Cup. More than Shreyas Iyer, we should be discussing why Yashasvi Jaiswal is not in the team. Now Rohit Sharma is out, Virat Kohli is out, but Jaiswal is not in the team. Why? He has done nothing wrong," Wassan told CNN-News18.

I think there is some bad blood there: Wassan

Wassan mentioned how Shreyas Iyer and Gautam Gambhir worked in tandem to help the Kolkata Knight Riders win the IPL title in 2024. While Iyer was the skipper of the Kolkata-based franchise, Gambhir was their mentor.

Wassan failed to understand why Iyer has not earned a recall to India's T20 setup since his last appearance in the format in December 2023. However, the cricketer-turned-commentator feels that Tilak Varma's excellent performances during South Africa tour last year might have kept Iyer out of the squad. Wassan also opined that Iyer should have at least been named among the reserves.

“This is the beauty of cricket and selections in the Indian cricket team. There is a lot of conjecture. I will not call it politics, but definitely personal likes and dislikes. I am amused. Why? Because him (Shreyas Iyer) and Gautam Gambhir’s mind won them the IPL and what he, ever since he came to PBKS and what he did was something magical. So I think there is some bad blood there. But having said that, this one is true that the guy who actually replaced him in the T20 format, Tilak Varma, has done so well that he can’t be replaced," Wassan said.

"Where does Shreyas Iyer play if he comes into the team? But still, for the optics, there is an eye test. Some players immediately feel good to the eye. They should be kept in the team. You have not kept him in the team, you have not kept him in the standbys. Is Shreyas Iyer not good enough to be in the 20 of India? I think I would have kept him in the standbys, if somebody gets injured," Wassan added.