File photo of Shreyas Iyer
would’ve wanted to. Still not able to deliver with the desired consistency, Iyer has been in and out of the team over the last couple of years. The batters has struggled the most against short-pitched deliveries, though he continues to deny the extent to which short balls have troubled him. Iyer once again blasted critics who continue to target him over his weakness against shorter deliveries.
While Iyer has no problem with people discussing such things among themselves, he does find it offensive if such things are said to the player.
“It’s irritating, especially when it comes from people, who haven’t faced 150 km per hour delivery, advising you to play in a particular way,” the Punjab Kings captain and India batter said at the Indian Express’ Idea Exchange.
“But I would say it is their opinion. They have all the right to talk, but they can talk between themselves not to the player directly,” he added.
Iyer recalled some of his famous knocks in ODI cricket, especially in the 2023 World Cup, recalling how he became a fan of himself. The middle-order batter wants to continue doing the same in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy.
“The 82 against Sri Lanka. Because there was a lot of talk about dropping me from the squad, and that I’m not providing much for the team,” he said.
“Even though I had scored a 50 against Pakistan, there was some talk which put me in a helter-skelter situation. That kind of (talk) boosted my instincts from within.
“I wanted to just give my 110 percent. And in that game, I decided that I would just back my instincts and go full throttle. No looking back. I’m impressed by the way I played in that game. I became my own fan after that. It was a game-changing innings, especially in the World Cup,” he added.
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