Asia Cup: 'He is missing' - Ex-India wicketkeeper reasons Shreyas Iyer's absence

Former India wicketkeeper Vijay Dahiya believes Shreyas Iyer can consider himself unfortunate to miss out on the Asia Cup squad but admitted such omissions are inevitable given the depth of the Indian side. Iyer, who guided Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL 2024 title and scored over 600 runs at a strike rate of 175 in IPL 2025 for Punjab Kings, was not included in the 15-member squad for the tournament starting September 9 in the UAE. Yashasvi Jaiswal was another notable absentee. “Once the team is picked, we cannot say much about it. Whenever any Indian team is picked, some players will always miss out. The bench strength we have, we can field two separate teams but some players will always be left out,” Dahiya told PTI. He added that Iyer’s form made his absence a talking point. “But nothing much can be changed now, as he is not even part of the reserves as well. But yes, the way he has performed has made everyone think that he is missing.” While Iyer sits out, pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has been included inthe white-ball side for the first time since the 2024 T20 World Cup. The fast bowler has only played Tests over the past year and missed the Champions Trophy as well. Dahiya, however, feels the team management will be cautious with him. “I feel that there will be many such matches where he (Bumrah) might not play and feature only in those crunch matches, and we can manage his workload there,” he said. Mohammed Siraj was also left out of the squad, a decision Dahiya attributed to workload management after a taxing five-Test series in England. Looking ahead, Dahiya backed India to dominate the competition. “There is not much threat in the Asia Cup for India but T20 is a format that changes quickly. India will lose only if we have a bad day or someone plays exceptional cricket,” he said.