Overview
- In a CricTracker interview, the Rajasthan Royals pacer called it senseless to argue Iyer should lead India solely because he took Punjab Kings to the IPL 2025 final.
- Sharma said franchise leadership differs from international captaincy, emphasizing the challenge of managing a 15-player national squad.
- He cited Suryakumar Yadav, who captains India T20Is without leading an IPL franchise, and noted Rohit Sharma held India roles despite not captaining in the league.
- Iyer was left out of India's Asia Cup T20 squad despite 604 runs at a 175.07 strike rate in IPL 2025 and guiding PBKS to their first final in 11 years.
- Addressing selection balance, Sharma backed the seam options of Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana and Hardik Pandya, and said omissions like Prasidh Krishna's cannot please everyone.