Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif has expressed his dissatisfaction with the BCCI regarding his omission from the Test team for the upcoming series against England. He specifically pointed out the selection of Sai Sudharsan, who has taken over the middle-order role previously held by Shreyas Iyer.

Kaif argues that Sudharsan's inclusion is primarily based on his impressive performances in the IPL. Since 2023, the left-handed batsman has emerged as one of the top openers for the Gujarat Titans, continuing his streak of strong performances into the 2025 season. Such consistency in T20 cricket is indeed a rare achievement.

While Sudharsan's success in white-ball formats has worked in his favor, Kaif believes that Shreyas Iyer's contributions have been overlooked. Iyer was a key player for India during the 2023 ODI World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy, excelling in various domestic tournaments including the Ranji Trophy and IPL, yet he was not selected.

In a recent discussion on his YouTube channel, Kaif stated:

“Sai Sudharsan is undoubtedly a talented player. However, he was chosen for the Test squad following a successful IPL season where he scored 679 runs. In contrast, Iyer has consistently performed well, accumulating around 550 runs in the 2023 ODI World Cup and Champions Trophy. He continues to excel with the bat for Punjab Kings, having scored 514 runs and also captaining the team. It seems inconsistent to apply white-ball performance criteria to one player while disregarding it for another.”

Although Kaif's arguments hold some weight, Iyer's Ranji Trophy statistics show he scored 480 runs at an impressive average of 68.57 over seven innings. However, it is worth noting that his two centuries, 142 and 233, were against relatively weaker teams like Maharashtra and Odisha, while he managed only 105 runs in five other innings.

Sudharsan, on the other hand, can proudly claim a double century against a formidable opponent like Delhi. Additionally, he has scored a century for India A against Australia A in an away match and gained valuable first-class experience in English conditions during two County Championship seasons with Surrey. This indicates that his selection was not solely based on IPL performance.