Shreyas Iyer isn’t too bothered about missing out on the ongoing T20I series against Afghanistan nor is he fretting over his place in the Test side, instead focusing entirely on making a successful return to the Ranji Trophy after a gap of five years.
Iyer had a poor run in the Test series against South Africa where he managed to enter double figures just one (31 in Centurion) in three completed innings, and has gone back to domestic cricket in order to regain his form ahead of a marquee five-Test series against England that gets underway 10 days from now in Hyderabad.
Iyer, however, wasn’t too bothered about losing his spot in the T20I team in a World Cup year and wasn’t thinking too far ahead to the Test series — for which he has been included, at least in the first two Tests. Instead, he fixed his attention on Mumbai’s home game against Andhra, in which he struck a run-a-ball 48 the only time he got to bat as the 41-time champions cruised to a 10-wicket victory.
“See, right now I’m being in the present. I have finished the match which I was asked to play (Ranji game against Andhra). I came, and I executed, so I am happy with what I’m doing,” Iyer told reporters in Mumbai after the match
“Something that is not in my control, I can’t be focusing on that. Coming here and winning the match was my focus and that’s what we did today.
“It’s important to take one match at a time, not think about five-match Test series. The team is only for the first two games. The motto would be to perform in the first two games and then look forward to the rest of the games,” the middle-order batter added.
Read | ‘Kishan, Iyer not dropped due to disciplinary issues’: Dravid rejects reports
Iyer, whose last Ranji appearance was against Vidarbha in the 2018-19 season, collected seven fours during his 48-run knock as Mumbai piled on a first innings score of 395. Left-arm spinner Shams Mulani’s six-for (6/65) would then help Mumbai bowl Andhra out for 184 and collect a massive 211-run lead.
Andhra could only manage 244 in their second innings, setting Mumbai a meagre 34-run target that was easily overhauled.
One of the key takeaways for Iyer from the four-day game that took place in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex was testing his match-fitness and his ability to stay on the field for extended periods of time.
“I’m assuming that we would be getting turning wickets against England. But other than that, it was just for my match fitness, to stay on the field as long as possible, that’s what mainly I was focusing on because especially after my injury, it has been tough for me to stick on the outfield for long. So this was great practice for me.”
As for the intense competition for slots in the Indian team across formats, the Kolkata Knight Riders captain described the situation as “fun”.
“It’s fun. I love competition, and when competition is there, you face more challenges. And that’s what I thrive on personally. So I enjoy having competition around because then you can go at each other and also against the opponents to show your talent and skills.”
Read | Ishan Kishan yet to make himself available for Jharkhand in Ranji Trophy
When asked about his approach on the opening day of the match, Iyer said that he wanted to attack the bowlers irrespective of the situation. The Andhra bowlers had, additionally, tried bowling short and negative lines to the right-hander from around the wicket, which ultimately did little to stop Iyer from dispatching the ball towards the fence multiple times.
“I’m going to play attacking irrespective of the situation. And also when you bowl negative, when you bowl safe and defensive at the start, you want to score runs and you need to take your team through up to a certain point.
“So that was my mindset and that’s why stuck with. Yeah, I was happy irrespective of the score,” Iyer signed off.
Shreyas Iyer savours ‘great practice’ in Ranji Trophy, says he’s not thinking too far ahead to England TestsRead More
Be First to Comment