Gautam Gambhir breaks silence on Shreyas Iyer's omission from India squad for England tests

BCCI snubbed Shreyas Iyer from the India squad for the England test series.

Following the conclusion of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, India are all set to tour England. During the tour, both nations will face each other in five test matches. The series will commence with the first encounter at Headingley, Leeds, on June 20.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced India squad for the England series on May 24. The BCCI appointed Shubman Gill as the new test captain following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the longest format. They also named Rishabh Pant as the new vice-captain of the team.

One of the shocking omissions from the India squad for the England series was Shreyas Iyer. The right-handed batsman was overlooked by Indian selectors for the series despite his marvellous form in IPL 2025 and domestic cricket over the last one year.

Anyone can be called if they are in good form: Gautam Gambhir on Shreyas Iyer

Indian test skipper Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir conducted a press conference on June 5 ahead of Team India’s departure for England. During the press conference, Gambhir was asked whether Iyer could be called to England during the test series if needed. Gambhir said that anyone can be called if they are in good form.

“Anyone can be called. Anyone can be called if they are in good form. We could only pick 18. For me, it’s always about being open to people who are in good form, who can come in and deliver,” the 43-year-old said.

Iyer’s omission also raised eyebrows last month when Indian selectors revealed the squad for the England series. At that time, India chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that there was no room for Iyer in the squad at the moment.

“Yes, Shreyas Iyer has played well in domestic cricket, but at the moment, there is no room for him in the Test Team,” Agarkar had said.

Notably, Iyer showed a wonderful form in IPL 2025. He led Punjab Kings (PBKS) to the playoffs for the first time after the 2014 season. They ended up as runners-up by losing the final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Iyer finished as the sixth highest run-scorer in the tournament and the top run-getter for his team. He slammed 604 runs in 17 games at an average of 50.33 and a strike rate of 175.07. He also hammered six half-centuries in the tournament.

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