Chief selector Ajit Agarkar was 'furious' with Shreyas Iyer, claims report

Chief selector Ajit Agarkar was furious after India batter Shreyas Iyer reportedly showed up at the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Academy in Mumbai despite complaining of back pain and skipping Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy quarter-final against Baroda, which ultimately led to him getting dropped from the BCCI’s central contracts list.

Iyer had been dropped from the Indian team after his poor returns in the first two Tests against England, and had been asked to represent Mumbai in the ongoing Ranji Trophy in order to regain his form.

The Mumbaikar, who had played the group match Andhra match before the England Tests, opted against featuring in the quarter-final clash against Baroda citing back pain. Iyer, however, was later spotted training with KKR coaches at the academy run by the franchise that he captains in the Indian Premier League. According to RevSportz, that drew the ire of chief selector and former India all-rounder Agarkar.

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The selection committee have a major say in the BCCI’s affairs and it was the Agarkar-led panel that ultimately recommended the final contract list, from which both Iyer and wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan had been dropped.

Read | Iyer, Kishan will be awarded BCCI central contract if they fulfil criteria of required matches: Report

Like Iyer, Kishan too showed reluctance to go back to the Ranji Trophy, where he represents Jharkhand, despite being advised to do so by the board as well as the Indian team leadership. The Mumbai Indians cricketer had even been offered a shot at redemption midway during the England Test series as KS Bharat’s replacement in the XI, only to turn it down and allow Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan Royals’ Dhruv Jurel to grab the opportunity with both hands.

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Kishan, who hasn’t represented the Indian team since November, had additionally trained with India all-rounder and Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya despite his refusal to join the Jharkhand squad in the Ranji Trophy, which did not go down well with the board.

Timeline | What led to Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer losing BCCI contracts

The BCCI’s stern decision, however, has led to Iyer returning to the Mumbai XI for their Ranji semi-final clash against Tamil Nadu, which got underway on Saturday in Mumbai.