Shreyas Iyer can appear to be cocky with an exaggerated swagger often forcing him to walk a tightrope between brilliance and arrogance.
During the 2023 ODI World Cup, he even took a journalist head-on after being poked about his shortcomings against the short balls following a match-winning 82 against Sri Lanka in Mumbai.
“When you say it is a problem for me, what do you mean?” he had countered. “Troubled me? Have you seen how many pull shots I’ve played? Ye sab mahaul
aap logo ne banaya hua hai (This perception has been created by you). In my mind, I have no problem against the short ball.”
However hard he tried to deny it, he often fell prey to the bouncer trap and paid a heavy price. A recurring back injury also sidelined him for a few weeks last year.
On Wednesday night he was watching a movie when Rohit Sharma called to say that he needed to be ready to play since Virat Kohli was nursing a knee trouble. It forced him to retire to his bed early.
Playing his first international since July when he made a comeback to the team following a BCCI ban for not participating in domestic cricket last season, Shreyas has shown that he means business. When Jofra Archer tried to unsettle him with his pace and short stuff in Nagpur, Shreyas was quick to get into position and pulled him out of the ground for two consecutive sixes.
During his time away from the national team, he experimented with a slightly open stance with his feet spread wider and that has enabled him to overcome his weakness on bouncy wickets.
He worked on the bat-lift and downward swing with Abhishek Nayar and Praveen Amre, his trusted lieutenants in Mumbai. The grind of the domestic cricket also helped him to sort out his flaws.
Archer was taken aback when Shreyas made space and hammered him over third man for his second six. It was evident during his 59 off 36 balls on Thursday that he could now generate more power in his shots.
Shreyas’s innings has now opened a selection headache for the team management. What will happen once Virat Kohli returns to the side? If they go in with five specialist bowlers and an all-rounder in Hardik Pandya, then they might have to open the innings with Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma.
But will it be wise to constantly shuffle with Gill’s batting position when he has just achieved success at No. 3? Such experiments haven’t fetched him positive results in the past and could affect his momentum.
Shreyas has now established himself at No.4 and has maintained a consistent record in ODIs. The way he held the batting together in the middle overs — 468 runs at an average of 66.25, with two hundreds — during the 2023 World Cup, it was key to India’s unbeaten run till the final.
There is a school of thought that Rohit and Gill will go back to opening the innings much like in the ODI World Cup. Jaiswal will be tried out in the England series just to keep him ready in case he is needed for the Champions Trophy.
Shreyas has always been adept at handling spin and on the wickets in Dubai, similar to those of the subcontinent, he could be a handful. He has a point to prove, and with a supportive team management in place, the Champions Trophy could be Shreyas’ turning point.
