Shreyas Iyer asks to take a vacation from red-ball cricket

Shreyas Iyer wishes to take a break from playing first-class and Test cricket. In order to reset his fitness routine, the middle-order batsman for India has asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to let him to temporarily halt his red-ball career.

This comes after he was selected captain for the four-day match against Australia A and withdrew from it, as first reported by Cricbuzz. He spoke with top selector Ajit Agarkar and sent a request to the BCCI following the first game in Lucknow last week.

His uneasiness during the Duleep Trophy, where he represented West Zone earlier this month, served as the impetus for the decision. He felt the same way during last week's India A vs. Australia A match. Before departing Lucknow for Mumbai, he wrote to the BCCI and interacted with India A coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar and the BCCI physios right after the game.

However, Iyer, who had back surgery in 2023, is not quite ending his Test career. "He's just looking for a vacation. He will restart his red-ball career and return stronger after improving his fitness," an insider claimed. He is probably going to miss Mumbai's Ranji Trophy in the next season. Iyer has already participated in 70 first-class matches, primarily for Mumbai, and 14 Test matches.

But Iyer plans to stay in the white-ball game. It should come as no surprise if he is selected for the T20I team as well, and he should be a lock to start the ODI series in Australia. Between October 19 and November 8, India will play five Twenty20 Internationals and three One-Day Internationals.