Former India fielding coach R Sridhar has shared an interesting incident relating to Shreyas Iyer’s short ball misery in International cricket. Shreyas Iyer missed out on a berth in India’s Asia Cup 2022 squad. He has been kept on stand-by by the Indian selectors for the upcoming tournament. The right-handed batter has not been consistent in his International career so far.
Shreyas Iyer has been found wanting against short deliveries so far in his career. The opposition bowlers have exploited his weakness well, bowling a barrage of bouncers against the Indian cricketer. Recalling an incident from the 2018 India’s tour of South Africa, R Sridhar revealed Ravi Shastri’s reaction to one of Shreyas Iyer’s dismissals against short deliveries.
The former India fielding coach expressed that the former Indian coach was quick to realize that Shreyas needs to work hard on his batting, especially against short balls. Speaking to Cricket.com, R Sridhar said,
“It is a very perceived weakness that we all have been seeing at the highest level, not just now. I remember an incident way back in 2018. Shreyas Iyer had made his (ODI) debut against Sri Lanka in India and, quickly after that, we went to South Africa for a multi-format tour.”
“Straightaway, Morkel tested him out with a short ball and he fended it to the third man. And Ravi Shastri was sitting beside me. He said, ‘Sri, ye bachcha ko bahut kaam karna padega’ (Sri, this kid will have to work really hard). Ravi Shastri saw just one ball and said that this guy has to work hard against quick, short-pitched bowling,” he added.
The day he cracks that code, bowlers will have nowhere to go: R Sridhar
R Sridhar acknowledged that Shreyas Iyer will struggle in international cricket unless he finds a solution to short ball miseries. However, he also added that the 27-year-old would plunder the opposition bowlers, once he overcomes his weakness.
“The day he cracks that code of short pitch bowling, bowlers will have nowhere to bowl to him. He is a very good player of all other stuff. It’s only a matter of time. It’s more of a mental thing than anything else,” said R Sridhar.
Shreyas Iyer has scored 449 runs in fourteen matches this year for India in T20Is. He averages 44.90 and has a strike rate of 142.99, including four fifties in 2022. The Mumbai batter will be hoping to find a place in India’s squad for the T20 World Cup 2022.
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