07 June,2026 09:30 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh Mayure
Shreyas Iyer. Pic/BCCI
Though India batter Shreyas Iyer was not part of India's T20 World Cup-winning squad last March, the Mumbai batter has been rewarded for his consistency, both as a batter and leader, when chief selector Ajit Agarkar and his selection committee named him as India's new T20I captain on Saturday.
Iyer, 31, has represented India in 14 Tests, 76 ODIs, and 51 T20Is, scoring 811, 2977, and 1104 runs respectively. He will now lead India on the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, and at the Asian Games.
"We have seen what he [Shreyas] has done over the last few years, leading different [IPL] franchises. He won the [IPL] final once [for Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024]. We have seen everything that a captain possibly can [handle]. His own performances have been really good," Agarkar said during the post-selection press conference at the BCCI headquarters at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
Agarkar reckoned that Iyer, who last played a T20I for India in December 2023, missed out on the T20 World Cup because of Suryakumar Yadav's presence in the middle order. "He [Iyer] was quite close to getting into the [T20] World Cup squad. With Surya still there, there was no room for him," Agarkar said.
Explaining how Suryakumar lost his captaincy and place in the team, Agarkar, a former India pacer, said: "Obviously it's a tough one having just won the T20 World Cup, but as it happens after most World Cups, we try and reassess what's the best way forward. [It was due to] partly his [Suryakumar] own form, but also looking at the next two-year cycle, or a little more than two years now till the next World Cup, we thought this was the best way forward, and like I said, Shreyas is a very deserving captain."
Agarkar admitted that Suryakumar was discussed in detail by the selectors.
"We deliberated on [Suryakumar] a lot, especially when someone has led you to a World Cup win. It's not the easiest sort of discussion to have, but I don't necessarily think... at some stage, we were going to look at it. Now, whether IPL form dictated it, I'm not so sure. There were always conversations around it," he added.
The selectors rested pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah for the Ireland and England T20I series. However, the ace pacer will return for the Asian Games, which will be held in Japan from September 19 to October 4.
80.76
Suryakumar Yadav's winning percentage as T20I skipper - the highest among Indian captains; India won 42 and lost 10 of out 52 matches under his leadership
One
Shreyas Iyer is the only captain to have guided three IPL franchises to the final
Squad for Ireland and England T20Is
Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (vc), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Asian Games squad
Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (vc), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Star batter Virat Kohli will miss India's three-match ODI series against Afghanistan later this month after failing to recover from a hamstring injury, and the selectors on Saturday named Yashasvi Jaiswal as his replacement.
Kohli, who plays only one format after retiring from Test and T20I, had suffered a hamstring injury during the recent IPL final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad.
