After being left out of India’s Asia Cup 2025 squad, middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer is now expected to take charge of India A in the upcoming home series against Australia A. The series will feature two unofficial Test matches that are scheduled to be played in Lucknow. Shreyas Iyer, who guided Punjab Kings to the IPL 2025 final, is now tipped to lead India A in the two four-day red-ball matches against Australia A. The Australian second-string side will arrive in India next week for a limited tour that includes two unofficial Tests as well as three one-day games. The red-ball matches are set to be held at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, while the one-day fixtures will be played at Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India is yet to reveal the official India A squad. According to a report by Cricbuzz, Iyer is expected to be included in the team for the series against the visiting Australians. Notably, he was overlooked for India A’s red-ball matches against the England Lions earlier this year in May and June. Currently, the Mumbai batter is representing West Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2025 semifinal against Central Zone in Bengaluru. As per available information, Iyer could be given a “prominent role in the side ; captaincy or otherwise.”
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Iyer’s most recent appearance in international cricket came in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.Several other contenders could also be in the mix for India A selection. Performances in the ongoing Duleep Trophy may have a significant impact on squad choice, with all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and opener Abhimanyu Easwaran, who has captained India A before, likely to be considered. Young top-order batter B Sai Sudharsan is also in contention.
Narayan Jagadeesan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar are among the frontrunners to feature. Jagadeesan, who was recently named as Rishabh Pant’s replacement during the fifth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, struck 197 runs for South Zone in their Duleep Trophy match against North Zone on September 5. Meanwhile, Gaikwad made an impressive 184 for West Zone against Central Zone in Bengaluru.
Sandeep Sharma On Shreyas Iyer CAPTAINCY
In an interview with CricTracker, the experienced seamer explained why IPL captaincy cannot be equated with leading the national side. “See, this debate that he as a captain took his team to the finals is senseless. Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] is not doing the captaincy of any franchise. So that is not the criteria to be the captain of the Indian side. And for the last three years, Rohit was not doing the captaincy of any franchise. But still, he was the captain of T20 Indian team and one day side is still the same captain. And he was the captain of all three formats of Tests. So that is not the criteria that what you do in IPL. IPL is totally different. It is a domestic league,” Sharma said.