The India A series will begin on October 30, one day after the AUS vs IND 1st T20I.
India A will host South Africa for two unofficial Tests, starting on October 30, before the senior men’s team kicks off the multi-format tour. The squad announced yesterday had some bizarre combinations. Despite Shreyas Iyer leading India A in the previous series, he was not a part of the squad. Instead, Rishabh Pant is named captain with Sai Sudharsan as his deputy.
Rishabh Pant (C) (WK), Ayush Mhatre, N Jagdeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Anshul Kamboj, Yash Thakur, Ayush Badoni, and Saransh Jain.
Rishabh Pant (C) (WK), KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Sai Sudharsan (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep.
Shreyas is currently on a tour of Australia for three ODIs with the senior team. He is also named as Shubman Gill’s deputy. In the first ODI, he made 11 runs off 24 balls. The remaining matches will take place on October 23 and 25. The Indian team will continue to play T20Is, however, some players like Shreyas, KL Rahul, and Mohammed Siraj will return to India. While Rahul and Siraj are part of the India A squad, Shreyas is left out. Thus, the reason for the schedules clashing is ruled out.
Last month, the Mumbai-based batter was part of the India A home series against Australia. He captained the side for the first match before ruling himself out for the second match. He made eight runs in his solitary innings. On the other hand, Shreyas played his last international Test in February 2024 against England. He made 50-odd runs across two innings at Visakhapatnam. Overall, in two Tests, he returned with 104 runs.
Shreyas Iyer has drawn the short end of the stick in all formats, not just Tests. He is not a mainstay in the T20Is either, despite performing exceptionally in the IPL 2025 and Mumbai T20 league, while leading both of his teams to the respective Finals.
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All factors being said and done, Shreyas’s omission from the longer format comes on the back of a personal decision. The 30-year-old cited fitness concerns to stay away from multi-day matches, while shifting his focus solely on white ball cricket.
Recently, Shreyas Iyer wrote to the BCCI about his back pain and fatigue being reasons why he opted out of India A’s second Test against Australia. Though his letter received eyeballs from the cricket fraternity, the player’s priority to focus on limited-overs cricket cannot be ignored.
“He [Shreyas Iyer] has informed us that he will be taking a break from red ball cricket, and it’s good that he has cleared it out because selectors are now clear about his future. He won’t be playing red ball cricket in coming months, and he has informed the board that he will assess his body in future in consultation with physios and trainer and take a call on it,” a source had confirmed to The Indian Express last month.
Additionally, Shreyas’s change in batting stance and short ball issues on bouncy pitches and swing conditions make things worse.
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