'He wishes to...': BCCI releases official statement on Shreyas Iyer's Test status

BCCI releases official statement on Shreyas Iyer's Test status (BCCI Photo)

The BCCI on Thursday released an official statement regarding Shreyas Iyer's status in red-ball cricket. Iyer, who was the captain of India A during the unofficial Tests against Australia A, played the first match but pulled out from the second in Lucknow. Following the pull out the captaincy mantle was passed to wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel as the match is currently underway at the Ekana Stadium.

BCCI on Thursday released the squads for one-day matches against Australia A and named Iyer the skipper. In its statement, the cricket body also addressed his current status in red-ball cricket.

The official statement from BCCI on the subject read: "Mr Shreyas Iyer has informed the BCCI of his decision to take a six-month break from red-ball cricket. Having undergone back surgery in the UK and managed his recovery well, he has recently experienced recurring back spasms and stiffness while playing the longer format. He wishes to utilise this period to build endurance, body resilience and work on his fitness. In view of his decision, he was not considered for selection for the Irani Cup."

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As reported previously, Iyer had written to the BCCI requesting for a break from red-ball engagements in order to regain fitness to compete in multi-day matches. Iyer had scored 8(13) before being trapped LBW by spinner Corey Rocchiccioli in his last red-ball appearance, which was last week.

As per reports, Iyer felt the discomfort on his back while playing for the West Zone during the Duleep Trophy earlier this month. He felt the same during the first unofficial Test and right after the match he got in touch with the BCCI physios and India A coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar. Following this he wrote to the BCCI, presenting his situation around red-ball participation and left for Mumbai.

Iyer had underwent a back surgery in 2023 after playing the ODI World Cup at home in 2023. In an interview to GQ India earlier this month, Iyer had opened up about the back injury, which "paralysed" one of his legs. During the conversation, Iyer detailed the experience and lamented the fact of how fans treat "athletes as robots".