Aakash Chopra recently reacted to Shreyas Iyer’s exclusion from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) central contracts. Aakash Chopra said the BCCI’s decision was correct if Shreyas Iyer prioritized Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) over playing in the Ranji Trophy.
Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were excluded from contracts for 2023-24 after opting out of the 2024 Ranji Trophy. Prior to this, BCCI secretary Jay Shah asked centrally contracted players to compete in domestic matches when They will not represent India.
The BCCI claimed that the duo was not considered for the central contracts. Shreyas and Kishan had previous Grade B and Grade C contracts respectively. Iyer has been a regular member of India’s Test and ODI setup and played a crucial role in the 2023 World Cup.
Shreyas Iyer decided not to play – Aakash Chopra
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra highlighted Shreyas Iyer’s decision not to represent Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy but to attend a KKR camp.
“According to an ESPNcricinfo article, Shreyas Iyer said after the Vizag match that he has a slight pain in his back. The NCA reported that he has no recent injuries and that they believe he is ready to play. They asked him to play while the Ranji Trophy was being fought,” Chopra said.
“There Shreyas Iyer decided not to play. However, in the same article it is written that he went to the pre-season with KKR. Now that’s a problem. If that has happened, if you are doing the KKR pre-season camp, there will be a problem,” he added.
Shreyas Iyer was dropped from the Indian team after the second Test match against England. The right-handed batsman was asked to play first-class cricket due to his poor form in the format. He scored only 104 runs in two Test matches at a disappointing average of 26.
Ishan Kishan doesn’t want to play – Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra highlighted Ishan Kishan’s decision to skip the last few Ranji Trophy league matches for Jharkhand despite being asked to play. Chopra highlighted Kishan’s choice to practice with his IPL captain Hardik Pandya in Baroda.
“Shreyas Iyer’s team is playing the semi-final. So he is available. However, as Ishan Kishan’s Jharkhand was not in a position to qualify and there were a few matches left, he was asked to play. He said that he doesn’t want to play,” Chopra stated.
“At the same time, he was already practicing with his IPL captain Hardik Pandya in Baroda but was not playing Ranji Trophy matches. So that hasn’t gone well. Instead of training, he could have played a match if his break had ended.”
Ishan Kishan has been excluded from the national team after opting out of the South African tour due to mental fatigue. Kishan is currently playing in the DY Patil T20 tournament in Navi Mumbai. Dhruv Jurel was preferred over him for the Test series against England.
Dhruv Jurel grabbed the opportunity with his performances in the ongoing series. The 23-year-old could have sealed his place in the Test team after winning the ‘Player of the Match’ award in his second Test match in Ranchi.
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