India cricketer Shreyas Iyer cited a stiff back as the reason for opting out of the second four-day unofficial Test against Australia ‘A’ in Lucknow.
As per reports, Iyer has informed the chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar about his troubled back and hence his unavailability for the second four-day match and the upcoming Test series against the West Indies starting October 2.
The Mumbai batter has had a history of back troubles including the last season when he missed some domestic games due to the issue. Earlier, Iyer, who was captaining India ‘A’, had decided to return back to Mumbai relinquishing his captaincy duties citing ‘personal reasons’.
Wicket-keeper batsman Dhruv Jurel was named as the skipper in his absence for the match that began on Tuesday.
Iyer, who was not part of the India squad for the England tour and the ongoing Asia Cup, was not in the best form in the first four-day match with scores of 8 and 13 not helping his cause.
Initially The Free Press Journal had contacted Shreyas’s father Santosh Iyer, and he was unavailable for comment regarding the developments.
With Iyer informing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about him returning to Mumbai due to the back stiffness issue, the middle order slot opens up for promising batters like Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel, who were in electric form during the first unofficial Test with scores of 150 and 140 respectively.
Meanwhile, an inconsistent Karun Nair is expected to be axed which will see Jurel and Devdutt Padikkal fancying their chances of making it to the squad.
