"I will feel bad and he should also" - Irfan Pathan's massive statement on star batter's exclusion from India's 2025 Asia Cup squad

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan reflected on star batter Shreyas Iyer's omission from India's 2025 Asia Cup squad. The squad came out on Tuesday, August 19. Shreyas was left out of the 15-member squad.

Moreover, he also missed out on the list of standby players for the tournament. Irfan Pathan reckoned that he would have been upset over missing out if he were Shreyas Iyer. He believed that either Shreyas or Shubman Gill would make it in the squad.

The former cricketer reminded how Shreyas led the Punjab Kings (PBKS) exceptionally well in IPL 2025 and also contributed with the bat. He made 604 runs from 17 matches at a strike-rate of 175.07.

"If I am Shreyas Iyer I will feel bad and he should also. He is not even in the substitutes. But when the selection was going to happen, I was thinking Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, either of the two have to be there as you have to prepare a leader. Shreyas captained well in the IPL and made match-winning contributions as a captain and a batter. But keeping Tilak Varma out could also have been a big issue," he said on his YouTube channel. (2:34)

Apart from Shreyas Iyer, the likes of Washington Sundar and Yashasvi Jaiswal also missed out on the main squad. However, Sundar and Jaiswal were included in the standbys list. Irfan reflected that the selection would not have pleased anyone, as several talented players who performed well would have inevitably missed out, with a place for only 15.

Talking further about Shreyas Iyer, he added that there could be a debate over Rinku Singh being included instead of the right-hander. However, he reckoned that the team opted for a left-right combination that could come in handy.

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Irfan Pathan backs Jitesh Sharma's inclusion in 2025 Asia Cup squad

Star Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) wicketkeeper batter Jitesh Sharma was included in India's 2025 Asia Cup squad. Irfan Pathan backed his selection and reckoned that he deserved it given his performance in IPL 2025.

Jitesh played a key role in RCB's IPL 2025 triumph. He scored 261 runs from 11 innings at a strike-rate of 176.35. Moreover, he slammed a magnificent unbeaten 33-ball 85 that helped RCB chase down a massive target of 228 runs and finish in the top two.

"The way Jitesh Sharma played in the IPL, I feel he definitely deserved it. If he had not performed like that it would have been difficult for RCB to reach the top. From that sense, Jitesh being there is a very big positive," he said. (5:51)

Irfan Pathan added that Jitesh, being a lower-order wicketkeeper batter, covered all bases. As Sanju Samson is a top-order wicketkeeper batter, Jitesh's inclusion helped the team cover more bases.