Former India cricketer turned analyst Ravichandran Ashwin commented on star India batter Shreyas Iyer’s exclusion amid the T20I series against New Zealand as well. Iyer was called up as a replacement for the injured Tilak Varma ahead of the series as well.

“There is a lot of fandom for many players these days due to IPL and all of that. Shreyas is a good player, and I also want to see him. But if you look at the larger picture, the team management did what they wanted to do,” he said on ‘Ash ki Baat’.

However, Ravichandran Ashwin was not surprised by star India all-rounder Shivam Dube’s swashbuckling knock in the fourth T20I. He did well despite the loss, hitting 65 off just 23 balls with three boundaries and seven maximums as well.

“The way Dube played last night, I was not surprised. He has that ability. He is in the team because he is considered a spin hitter and he is very good at it. If he plays like this and even if he comes off for two overs, India can get very far ahead in the game. But Dube will have some work to do. He is a powerful and fierce hitter. Come the World Cup, against teams like South Africa, Australia, England, we can be sure that Dube won’t get spinners against him when he comes to bat. It is upon us that cricketers realise that every month we need to make improvements. Otherwise, the game will start catching up,” R Ashwin concluded.