Shreyas Iyer isn’t well-liked by Ajit Agarkar, Gautam Gambhir: India coach reveals dark secret

Former India National Cricket Team assistant coach Abhishek Nayar, who was recently sacked midway through his stint by the BCCI, has made a massive revelation involving Shreyas Iyer.

Abhishek Nayar revealed that the star batsman Shreyas Iyer is not well-liked by the BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir, which led to his non-selection in India's Asia Cup 2025 squad.

Shreyas Iyer's red-hot form ignored by the BCCI

Iyer has set the stage on fire since his comeback to action following all the central contract drama with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

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He piled up big runs for Mumbai in domestic cricket across all formats and then delivered magical performances for India with the bat in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

In the ICC Champions Trophy, he played a key role in India's victory, finishing as the team's leading run-getter, with 243 runs at an average of 48.6 and a strike rate of 79.41.

Iyer continued his good form in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 and played exceptionally well for the Punjab Kings (PBKS).

In his first stint as Punjab Kings skipper, he took the team to the IPL final after a decade, slamming 604 runs at an amazing average of 50.33 and an excellent strike rate of 175.07.

I wanted to ask him (Agarkar) how he (Iyer) is not among the reserve players - Abhishek Nayar

Many experts felt that Iyer was a certainty in the India playing XI for the Asia Cup 2025 because of his recent form with the bat.

However, the BCCI selection committee didn't keep him in the 15-man squad for the marquee tournament, and he was not named in the standbys either.

This development left the former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar absolutely surprised and he wanted to personally ask Ajit Agarkar the reason behind Iyer's snub.

“I wanted to ask him (Agarkar) how he (Iyer) is not among the reserve players, if he is such a strong contender? Sometimes the selection meetings and the discussions that happen can be quite interesting, but I can’t fathom, I can’t understand," Nayar said while speaking on Star Sports.

Also Read: Revealed: Why Shreyas Iyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal have been snubbed from India's Asia Cup 2025 squad?

Maybe Shreyas Iyer isn’t as liked as someone else is - Abhishek Nayar

Abhishek Nayar further said that the BCCI sent Iyer a message by not even naming him in reserves and felt that the batter is not well-liked by the decision-makers.

“It sort of tells and sends a message to Shreyas Iyer that you aren’t in our 20-man scheme of things, because even if things do not work out, you aren’t going to be in the team," Nayar added.

“(In that case) either Riyan Parag will come or someone else. The big question here is whether they are looking at him from a T20 point of view. I always say this, selection, after a while, becomes about who you like a little more than the other. Maybe Shreyas Iyer isn’t as liked as someone else is," Nayar said, as quoted by News18.