Shreyas Iyer 'difficult to manage' claim emerges, IPL captaincy blamed for India T20I snub

Published - 31 Aug 2025, 01:28 PM | Updated - 31 Aug 2025, 01:29 PM

Shubman Gill re-claims all-format captaincy race; Shreyas Iyer snubbed
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Former England spinner Monty Panesar has made an interesting comment, saying that Shreyas Iyer missed out on a T20I comeback due to his overwhelming abilities in a leadership role.

Ever since Shreyas Iyer was snubbed from the Indian team for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, he has emerged as the central topic for controversy. Several slammed the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir as well as Shubman Gill and even stated that they were insecure about the Punjab Kings skipper.

This was followed by the sudden news of him replacing Rohit Sharma as the next ODI skipper for India, which was immediately shut down as the BCCI secretary clearly revealed that they never had any such discussions.

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It allows them to bring in someone younger who would be easier to manage - Monty Panesar on Shreyas Iyer's snub

After the snub of Iyer, who went on to be one of the major omissions from the Asia Cup squad, his T20 career, which had only hit an upward trajectory, saw a major low. Iyer was seen leading the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024, when they won the title, and he also led the Punjab Kings to the final of IPL 2025.

Now, in a recent conversation with India Today, former English spinner Monty Panesar has shared an unusual opinion, as he believes that Shreyas Iyer's leadership credentials are working against him, arguing that the Indian management is not looking for leadership options and hence is keen on trying younger players, who can offer longer service to Indian cricket.

“One of the reasons Shreyas Iyer is probably struggling to get into the Indian squad is because he brings those leadership skills, and, at the moment, possibly they've got that covered. It allows them to bring in someone younger, a bit more exciting to play, who would be easier to manage for coach Gautam Gambhir," Panesar said.

Shreyas denied Captaincy for the Duleep Trophy with Asia Cup hopes

Shreyas relished a domestic season, with piles of runs in the last Ranji Trophy and being the highest run-getter for Mumbai in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. This was followed by his return to India in the Champions Trophy squad, where he ended as the team's highest scorer in the competition.

In the recent IPL season, he finished with 604 runs in the IPL, with an average of over 50 and 6 half-centuries in the edition. His strike rate also saw a monumental rise over 175. He was the best to have adapted to India's latest philosophy of fearless cricket.

"So I think he being the captain in IPL, makes it a bit difficult for him to get into that team. But I do believe, if he keeps scoring runs, he should be playing. But it's just the talent, the talent is unbelievable. I think India has never been so blessed and lucky that they can pull out probably 2 to 3 teams right now and compete against the world,” Panesar reasoned behind Shreyas Iyer's repeated snub.

Shreyas Iyer himself denied a captaincy role for the West Zone side in the Duleep Trophy because he was expecting a Team India call-up for the Asia Cup, which could cut short his Duleep Trophy campaign.

Shubman Gill sidelined from Duleep Trophy participation due to illness

On the other hand, Shubman Gill, the Indian Test skipper who has now been appointed as the vice-captain in the Asia Cup squad, missed the Duleep Trophy opener for the North Zone side despite being appointed as the captain of the team.

It was reported that the player suffered from a viral flu and could not attend the sessions, but he is expected to have recovered now and was seen practising in the PCA nets for the upcoming Asia Cup.

ALSO READ: Sanju Samson set to cut ties with Rajasthan Royals despite Rahul Dravid's exit

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