Former Indian batter Ambati Rayudu questioned Shreyas Iyer’s critics after the fifth T20I against New Zealand. Iyer’s place in the team is often questioned but the Indian captain scored a fine knock of 50 runs off 23 balls in the final game against the Kiwis.
India was struggling at 19-2 after 3.1 overs but Iyer was able to steady the ship with Ishan Kishan. The pair added 93 runs off 43 balls to put India in a good position. Eventually, India was able to post a fighting score of 191 runs on the board but suffered a seven-wicket loss.
“He has always been in good form. When people doubt someone like Shreyas Iyer, it’s pretty laughable, because whenever he bats, he is a match-winner. He just takes the premier bowlers on, it is not like he is stitching up an innings where he is struggling and then he goes about hitting a few boundaries. He just dominates the innings, he controls the innings, so he is a fantastic, fantastic batter,” Ambati Rayudu said on Cricbuzz.
On the other hand, former Indian spinner Murali Kartik said bowlers were targeting Shreyas Iyer with short deliveries in the past but he has been able to make adjustments in his technique.
“There was a phase where people were targeting him with short balls, and you look at the new Shreyas Iyer, he has got the two-eyed stance, an open stance, and he is constantly flapping his bat in the air as a trigger movement. He has worked on what needs to be done, given his own body structure and stance. So, these are things which you look at. There are times where he tries the odd, and sometimes on the given day his changes might not give him the best timing on the given day. But the most important thing is, when you back yourself on sound fundamentals, you are always going to have better days,” Murali Kartik said.
India will now take on New Zealand in a five-match ODI series.
