"He should have been in the squad"- MSK Prasad questions omission of star India player from Asia Cup 2025 squad

Former chairman of India's men's selection committee MSK Prasad believes pacer Mohammed Siraj should have been picked in India's 15-member squad for Asia Cup 2025. Prasad felt that unless the 30-year-old was rested, he had to be included in the squad for the continental tournament that starts on September 7.

He added that he would have picked two out of Mohammed Siraj, Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal in the squad for the tournament. Prasad told Cricbuzz:

"My issue is not just about Iyer, but Mohammed Siraj too. Unless he has been rested as part of workload management, he should have been in the squad. He was the Player of the Match in the last Asia Cup (50-over) final.

"When they had the option of taking 17, they could have gone with the full-strength. I would have included two of the three - Iyer, Siraj and Jaiswal. That said, I can also understand why they may have avoided picking 17. Having too many players on the bench puts pressure on the XI."

While Yashasvi Jaiswal was included as one of the five standbys, Mohammed Siraj and Shreyas Iyer were neither part of the main squad nor part of the standbys.

Former cricketers slam Shreyas Iyer's omission from India's Asia Cup 2025 squad

The omission of Shreyas Iyer has found criticism from various quarters, especially former cricketers. Former India batter S Badrinath said that the 30-year-old deserved to be in the squad, adding that he had the numbers to back his case for a place in the touring party.

"He definitely deserved to get selected. Ajit Agarkar said he was unlucky but that's just a convenient route. Iyer has produced excellent numbers over the last two years and done brilliantly as a captain as well," Badrinath said on his YouTube channel.

Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also expressed his displeasure over Shreyas Iyer's omission, admitting that he was a much-improved player from the years gone by.