Aakash Chopra believes that the BCCI’s (Board of Control for Cricket in India) decision to deny Shreyas Iyer a central contract was justified if he chose a Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) camp over playing in the Ranji Trophy.
The list of players awarded central contracts for the 2023-24 sporting calendar was recently disclosed by the BCCI. Contrary to expectations, Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan, both regular fixtures in the Indian team, were overlooked for these annual contracts.
A video on Chopra’s YouTube channel indicated that Shreyas might have courted controversy if he declined to represent Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy and instead attended a KKR camp. He said:
“According to an ESPNcricinfo article, Shreyas Iyer said after the Vizag match that he has slight pain in his back. The NCA gave a report that he does not have any fresh injury and that they think he is ready to play. He was asked to play as the Ranji Trophy was on.”
Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra added:
“There Shreyas Iyer chose not to play. However, in the same article it’s written that he went for the pre-season camp with KKR. Now that is an issue. If that has happened, if you are doing KKR’s pre-season camp, there will be a problem.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra stated that Shreyas was requested to play first-class cricket since he had not made many runs in the ongoing Test series between India and England. While recognizing that any player might experience technical difficulties, the cricketer-turned-commentator stated that the middle-order batter’s concerns with the short ball came to the fore against England.
“He said that he doesn’t want to play” – Aakash Chopra on Ishan Kishan being denied a BCCI contract
It was noted by Aakash Chopra that despite being requested, Ishan Kishan chose to bypass the last handful of Ranji Trophy league matches for Jharkhand. Here are his words:
“Shreyas Iyer’s team is playing the semi-final. So he is available. However, since Ishan Kishan’s Jharkhand wasn’t in a position to qualify and some games were left, he was asked to play. He said that he doesn’t want to play.”
Aakash Chopra
If Kishan wanted to be psychologically rejuvenated, he should have played first-class cricket rather than practicing with Hardik Pandya, according to a reputable pundit.
“At the same time, he was already practicing with his IPL captain Hardik Pandya in Baroda but wasn’t playing Ranji Trophy matches. So that hasn’t gone down well. Instead of practicing, he could have played a match if his break was over.”
Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra remarked that Ishan Kishan was considered a wicketkeeper-batter possibility even in Tests prior to his break. However, he believes Dhruv Jurel has secured that position in the longer format for the time being and may possibly be in contention for a spot in the Men in Blue’s T20 World Cup roster.