BCCI Urged To Add Shreyas Iyer In India's T20I Squad

Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin lavished praise on Shreyas Iyer for his outstanding performance in the Indian Premier League 2026. Iyer, who is captaining Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the form of his life. He has scored 208 runs in six matches at an impressive strike rate of 182.46.

Why Shreyas Iyer should be included in India's T20I squad?

Ashwin who already retired from all forms of professional cricket, believes that Iyer is performing at a different level right now. In fact, he believes Iyer is slightly ahead of Rajat Patidar when it comes to a place in India’s T20I squad.

ALSO READ: IPL 2026 GT vs MI Live Streaming: Check Match Time, TV Channels & Online Options

Iyer’s captaincy has also made a big difference. Under his leadership, Punjab Kings (PBKS) remain the only unbeaten team in the tournament so far.

Interestingly, Iyer was part of India’s squad for the T20I series against New Zealand before the World Cup, coming in as a replacement for Tilak Varma. However, he didn’t make it to the final squad that went on to win the title.

“The audacity with which he is going about 200-220 chases is exceptional. At this point of time, if he’s not going to find higher honors, it’s not his loss anymore. It’s ours that we can’t see him performing for the Indian team in national colors. Very similar to Rajat [Patidar], but I just feel Shreyas is in a zone of his own. Rajat is exceptional, great spin hitter, but I just feel Shreyas is a couple of notches higher,” Ashwin said on ESPNCricinfo.

How should the BCCI select players?

Ashwin also shared how he thinks team selection should be done, especially in T20 cricket. According to him, selectors should simply pick the best 15 players without worrying too much about who misses out.

“When somebody has to be there in the team, write their name down. Just need to pick 15 – best 15 names possible. Don’t worry about who is missing out. In the case of Yashasvi Jaiswal, for that matter, the guy is an absolute monster. His hunger for runs is exceptional. Is he good enough to be written down for a list that is being prepared for an India T20I side? For sure. So, you write it down in that order and not worry about who you are replacing and then figure out who’s going to be a standby,” he added.

Ashwin on Indian cricket's depth

The 106-Test veteran also pointed out the depth in Indian cricket. He said India now has enough talent to even field two strong teams, similar to what Australia used to do during their peak years.

ALSO READ: Rohit Sharma to feature in MI's IPL 2026 clash against GT? Here's all you need to know

“At one point of time, when Australia were at their peak, we used to play a tri-series with Australia and Australia A. Put together two squads, it will be nice to watch,” Ashwin said.