“There will be pressure on Suryakumar Yadav” - Former cricketer backs comeback of star captain after PBKS vs RR IPL 2025 match

Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has tipped Shreyas Iyer to become Team India's T20I captain if he goes on to lead the Punjab Kings (PBKS) to their first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) title in 2025. The star batter guided the franchise to the playoffs for the first time in 11 years after a close win over the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Jaipur on Sunday, May 18.

Shreyas Iyer had led the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to their first title in a decade during the 2024 campaign, before being released ahead of the mega auction. PBKS broke the bank to acquire his services for INR 26.75 crore at the auction floor, making him the second-most expensive signing in the competition's history.

The recent win over RR, which took PBKS' points tally to 17 in 12 matches, was Iyer's 48th win as captain in the IPL in 82 games. His win percentage now reads 58.53 after having taken on the captaincy role from Gautam Gambhir in IPL 2018.

Manoj Tiwary opined that Iyer's impressive leadership will put pressure on the selectors and the current Team India T20I captain, Suryakumar Yadav.

"See, if this time, PBKS are champions, then there will be pressure on Team India. Iyer is not currently a part of the Indian T20I team, and I am getting a feeling that if he leads PBKS to the title, then there is going to be pressure on Suryakumar Yadav," Manoj Tiwary said on Cricbuzz.

"Not necessarily only as a player, but he can be part of the playing XI even as a captain, and he deserves it. Because, if you see, Suryakumar Yadav is not a captain in franchise cricket, while Iyer led KKR to the title last year. So, it is clear from our point of view that he is captaincy material, for sure. He is a born leader, how long can you ignore a born leader? Don't be surprised if he returns to the T20I setup soon and takes over the captaincy as well," he added.

Suryakumar Yadav was appointed T20I captain after Rohit Sharma retired from the format after the T20 World Cup 2024. The ace batter has led only a couple of times in the IPL on a stand-in basis, most recently during the Mumbai Indians' 2025 season opener against the Chennai Super Kings as Hardik Pandya was serving a one-match ban related to slow-over rate offences.

Shreyas Iyer last played a T20I in December 2023

The PBKS skipper has not been in Team India's scheme of things for a while, as far as the shortest format is concerned. Iyer was not considered for the 2024 T20 World Cup squad, while his last appearance came during the home series against Australia in December 2023.

It is to be noted that he was the vice-captain of the team after joining the side for the last two matches of the five-match affair. He scored a fifty in the series finale at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, but was not selected for the T20I assignments that followed.