NEW DELHI: Shreyas Iyer's omission from India's Asia Cup squad has emerged as the biggest talking point, with fans expressing disbelief at the selection committee's decision.

Iyer enjoyed a stellar IPL 2025, amassing 604 runs in 17 matches at an average of 50.03 and a strike rate of 175.07, including a standout unbeaten 97. Yet, despite his form and leadership, he narrowly missed out on a comeback.

India's chief selector Ajit Agarkar clarified during a press conference in Mumbai that Iyer's omission was neither the player's fault nor that of the selectors.

"In terms of Shreyas, it's again unfortunate. You tell me who he can replace in this squad. It's not his fault, nor ours - it's just that only 15 can be picked, and at the moment, he has to wait for his chances," Agarkar said.

Agarkar also shed light on the decision to leave Yashasvi Jaiswal out of India's Asia Cup squad, stressing that it was driven by squad balance and recent form rather than any shortcomings on Jaiswal’s part.

Jaiswal, who has been prolific in Tests with over 2,000 runs and has 723 runs in 23 T20Is, seemed to have lost out to Abhishek Sharma. The left-hander has been in red-hot form this year, scoring 279 T20I runs at a staggering strike rate of 219.68, including a highest score of 135.

"With regards to Yashasvi, it's unfortunate again. Abhishek Sharma has been outstanding over the past few months with the team, and he also gives us a bowling option. One of them was always going to miss out, and unfortunately, Yashasvi has to wait for his chances," Agarkar told the reporters in a press conference.

Squad: Surya Kumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson (WK), Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh

Stand-by players: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel