Shreyas Iyer hopes to make a Test comeback in the coming months. With the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) approaching, the batter from Mumbai wants to don the whites for India once again. Shreyas has slowly amped up his red-ball performance. He was in good touch throughout the Duleep Trophy but failed to convert his starts (41, 50, 57).
Things didn’t start well in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season either, as he registered an 8-ball duck against Baroda. However, he quickly turned that around against Maharashtra with a matching winning 142. Back at his scoring ways, Shreyas Iyer now wants to return to the Indian Test team once again.
Preparing for grab opportunity
Shreyas opened up about achieving one of his childhood dreams and what it’ll be like to play Down Under and face Australia in difficult and intense conditions. “As a young boy from Worli to now as a national player, I am living the dream of representing India in every single format that I had as a child. Playing in Australia, especially in a Border-Gavaskar series, is one of the biggest challenges in cricket. The conditions, the rivalry, and the intensity demand everything from you, and these are the moments you want to be part of as a cricketer. I’m preparing myself to grab that opportunity and leave a mark,” the batter told Hindustan Times.
I will be ready: Shreyas Iyer
Australia happens to be one of the reasons why he is no longer on the Indian Test side. Prior to the last BGT in India (2023), Shreyas had scored one century and five fifties in seven matches. A great start to a promising career. But, against Australia, he’d score just 42 runs at 10.5. After the BGT, he played four more matches, scoring just 145 runs at 18.12. Shreyas was consequently dropped, and players like Sarfaraz Khan have more or less cemented their spot in the middle order. He’s got much to prove, and if given a chance, he’ll be ready.
“I love being in those situations where the pressure is high. These are the challenges that push you to grow across formats, and I’ve been working on fine-tuning my game to be ready for any format. The competition for places in Indian cricket at the moment is greater than ever before because of the sheer amount of talent that exists in India. There are now a lot more avenues as well for the players to make an impression and make their mark and catch the eyes of the selectors. You have to make an impact every single time you’re on the pitch that is what I aspire to do. When I get the chance, I will be ready to make an impact because performing at the highest level for India is what it’s all about,“ Shreyas Iyer added.
