India’s discarded batter Hanuma Vihari has shed light on Shreyas Iyer’s performance after the T20I series win against New Zealand. Vihari reckons the Indian skipper fell a little short in his personal performances.
Iyer scored 126 runs in five games of the series at an average of 25.20 and a strike rate of 151.81.
The Indian captain scored a crucial knock of 42 runs off 28 balls in the series opener at the Hagley Oval, Christchurch. However, he failed to deliver in the next three games and then scored 50 runs off 23 balls in the final T20I at Seddon Park, Hamilton, on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan scored an impressive knock of 61 runs off 32 balls in the final game of the series, and Vihari said the left-hander deserves credit.
“I think Ishan Kishan deserves some credit. He needed that knock. In the last few games, it felt like he was not himself. But he scored a good half-century. Shreyas Iyer also scored an amazing half-century. Good knock from the captain. I think he fell a little short in this series. He was good as captain but also brilliant as a batter,” Vihari said in a video on his YouTube channel.
Vihari highlighted that New Zealand dropped a total of 15 catches in the series and if they had not wasted their chances, they would have won the series.
“Normally, New Zealand are a fantastic fielding side. They dropped 15 catches. If they hadn’t, maybe they would have won the series. Fortunately for them, the dropped catches did not prove costly in the final match. But New Zealand is a tough place to catch as the ball swirls in the air. I have faced it when I played there. But 15 dropped catches are a lot and it showed in the series result for them,” Hanuma Vihari said.
The first ODI between India and New Zealand will be played at Eden Park, Auckland, on Wednesday.
