“The selection process should be made live” - Former India cricketer calls out Gautam Gambhir over 2025 Asia Cup squad

Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has criticized head coach Gautam Gambhir and the selectors for leaving out Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal from the Men in Blue’s 2025 Asia Cup squad. On Tuesday, August 19, during a press conference in Mumbai, T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav and chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced a 20-member squad (including five standby), with Jaiswal named as a reserve but Iyer missing out entirely.

The exclusion of these two Mumbai players has since sparked widespread debate. Speaking to ANI, Tiwary said the selection process should be broadcast live so that everyone can see why a player is picked and why another is left out. He said:

“That is why, for many years, I have been saying the same thing: whenever these selectors select a team, the selection process should be made live, telecast live so that all sports lovers know why a player is selected and why other players are taken, and why someone is later removed. Coming to a press conference and saying just two words or two lines like “no place” is not enough. But the statistics tell a different story. So, it seems to me that two types of things come out in this way.”

The 39-year-old also slammed Gautam Gambhir for not backing Jaiswal, saying:

“The two deserving candidates could not secure a place in the team. They are Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal. If you look at old videos of current India coach Gautam Gambhir, he said in an interview that Yashasvi Jaiswal is a player who can always secure a place in the T20 team and should never be left out. And today, even after he has become a coach, his place has not been secured.”

Jaiswal has appeared in 23 T20Is for India, scoring 723 runs at an average of 36.15 and a strike rate of 164.31, including five fifties and one century.

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“Very eye-opening matter” - Manoj Tiwary on the absence of Shreyas Iyer from India’s 2025 Asia Cup team

In the same interview, Manoj Tiwary also expressed his support for Shreyas Iyer, highlighting his consistent performances in the IPL and domestic cricket and praising him as an outstanding captain. He said:

“If you look at Shreyas Iyer’s performance in last year’s IPL and in the domestic circuit, as a captain, I would say he is top-class. Because coming in the middle order, the way he has batted and scored at an average of 50, and the way he has led the Punjab team, after previously making KKR champions as captain, not getting a place in Team India’s T20 is a very eye-opening matter, it shows why this is happening. Those who deserve a chance are not getting it.”

Iyer’s most recent T20I appearance for India was against Australia in December 2023. In total, he has scored 1,104 runs in 47 innings, including eight fifties.