Legendary India batter Sunil Gavaskar has come out in defence of Shreyas Iyer after the right-handed batter was denied a central contract for the 2023/24 season by the BCCI, pointing out that he had featured in the Ranji Trophy before the ongoing Test series against England began. Iyer and Ishan Kishan were not included in the 30-member BCCI Central Contracts list running from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024, with the governing body saying the duo were not recommended for the annual retainership.
