Shreyas Iyer pens heartwarming message for NCA physios after Asia Cup 2023 selection

India star batter Shreyas Iyer has penned a heartfelt message to the physios in the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru after being included in the 17-member squad for the much-awaited Asia Cup 2023. The continental championship is scheduled to be contested in a hybrid model, with Pakistan and Sri Lanka hosting the tournament.

Nepal will play the campaign opener against Pakistan on August 30. Meanwhile, India will open their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2 at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy.

Shreyas was out of action after sustaining a back injury during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia at home in March 2023. He was then ruled out of the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League as well as the ICC World Test Championship final against Australia.
 
The 28-year-old took to his official Instagram handle, shared a picture with NCA physio Nitin Patel and trainer Rajinikant, and thanked them for helping him recover from the injury.

"Been a long journey but I'm super grateful to the people who stood by my side to help me to get where I am today. Thank you Nitin bhai, Rajini sir and everyone at The NCA, also outside of it who’ve been tirelessly helping me. Much love and much appreciated," Shreyas captioned the post.

See Shreyas Iyer's Instagram post:

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A post shared by Shreyas Iyer (@shreyasiyer96)

After announcing team India's Asia Cup 2023 squad, Ajit Agarkar, former cricketer and current Chairman of All India Selection Committee, stated that Shreyas has fully recovered from his injury and is fit to play. Apart from him, KL Rahul also made it to the roster after recuperating from a thigh injury he sustained during Lucknow Super Giants’ clash against Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2023.

The 28-year-old had been one of India's mainstays in the middle-order in the 50-over format. In 42 ODI games, he has amassed 1631 runs, including two centuries at an average of 46.60. His highest score in the format was an unbeaten 113 against South Africa in Ranchi in 2022.