Venkatesh Prasad, the former Indian pacer lashed out at the Indian selectors for giving Shreyas Iyer a place in the national T20I team ahead of the likes of Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda and Sanju Samson. On Friday, July 29, Shreyas Iyer failed to open his account in the first T20I against the West Indies at Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad.
Shreyas Iyer, on Friday, July 29, was dismissed without scoring against the West Indies after getting out to fast bowler Obed McCoy.
Venkatesh Prasad Questions Shreyas Iyer’s Selection In Indian XI For 1st T20I Ahead Of Sanju Samson, Deepak Hooda And Ishan Kishan
Shreyas Iyer came to bat in the fifth over after left-armer Akeal Hosein got rid of Suryakumar Yadav. However, the right-handed batter got out to fast bowler Obed McCoy in the very next over after facing four balls. Venkatesh Prasad asked the Men in Blue to focus on the right team combination going into the 2022 T20I World Cup later this year in Australia.
Venkatesh Prasad took to Twitter and wrote, “Some of the selection calls keeping the upcoming World T20 in mind are worth pondering. Shreyas Iyer in T20 cricket when you have Sanju Samson, Hooda and Ishan Kishan in the team is bizarre. With Virat, Rohit and Rahul definite starters, need to work on getting right balance.”
Shreyas Iyer was asked to bat at one down in the recently concluded four T20Is against South Africa and then did the same role in the first ODI against England and the three ODIs against West Indies as well. Shreyas Iyer scored back-to-back fifties while batting at No 3 in the ongoing ODI series against West Indies.
Shreyas Iyer scored 54 off 57 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes in the 1st ODI against hosts West Indies. In the 2nd ODI, he scored 63 off 71 balls including 4 fours and a six and was instrumental in India’s win.
In the 3rd ODI, he scored 44 off 34 balls. He amassed 161 runs in the ODI series averaging 53.67 and was the 3rd highest run-getter in the ODI series. However, in T20Is, Shreyas Iyer averages a modest 33.25 in 43 matches with 6 fifties having amassed 931 runs.
Venkatesh Prasad Urged Shreyas Iyer To Work Hard On His T20I Skills
In another tweet, Venkatesh Prasad urged Shreyas Iyer to work on his batting skills in the shortest format of the game.
Venkatesh Prasad wrote, “He is good in 50 over cricket. In T20 cricket, there are better players as of now who can get going from the word go. Shreyas will have to work hard on his skills for T20.”
Despite Shreyas Iyer’s failure, India went on to score 199 for 6 on the board after electing to bat first. Thereafter, the visitors restricted the West Indies to 122 for 8 and won the match by 67 runs. India also managed to take a crucial 1-0 lead in the 5-match series.
India managed to post 190 for 6 on a seemingly slowish surface, thanks to captain Rohit Sharma’s half-century and Dinesh Karthik’s unbeaten 41 off just 19 balls at the finish before West Indies’ batting was entangled in the web of spin.
India’s move to play three spinners – as opposed to West Indies’ one – reaped rich dividends as Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravi Bishnoi combined to pick up five wickets, helping the visitors to a 68-run win in the first T20I of the five-match series.
India 190 for 6 (Rohit 64, Karthik 41*, Joseph 2-46) beat West Indies 122 for 8 (Brooks 20, Ashwin 2-22, Arshdeep 2-24, Bishnoi 2-26) by 68 runs