When someone like Wasim Akram compliments a cricketer as a "match-winner", that should be a massive shot in the arm for the individual concerned.
Shreyas Iyer's consistent showing of late has drawn such rich praise from one of the finest cricketers to have played the game. But what matters even more for the 30-year-old is producing performances of note, which are crucial for him at this stage of his career.
The past year didn't go too well for Shreyas despite leading Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL crown. He was out of the BCCI central contracts before IPL 2024 and faced back issues too that had sidelined him. Following two home Tests against England last year, three ODIs against Sri Lanka back in August were his only India appearances, where he struggled against rival spinners.
However, Shreyas took things in his stride, featured in all the domestic tournaments and, importantly, made meaningful contributions in several of those games for his state team Mumbai.
The England ODIs earlier this month marked his India comeback and he batted with intent to accumulate 181 runs in three matches with two half-centuries. In the ongoing Champions Trophy, he struggled in India's campaign opener against Bangladesh last week. But despite a quiet start against Pakistan on a slow Dubai wicket, Shreyas was nonchalant in his stroke-making on Sunday once he had his eye in and contributed a fluent 56. This swag, noticed since the England ODIs, seems to be Shreyas's guiding force and is benefiting India's middle order too, just as it did during the 2023 World Cup.
"Shreyas has been a player of value in ODI cricket in most cases. But recently, he has trained well under the supervision of his coach Pravin Amre and we can see slight tweaks in terms of his back-lift and stance.
"He earlier used to have a side-on stance. At present, it's more open," former national selector Salil Ankola told The Telegraph on Monday.
"This back-lift is helping him deal better with the short-pitched stuff while he's also swishing his bat when facing the spinners."