With no central contract and no international game for the past 7 months, Shreyas Iyer, who has been facing a sort of exile from international cricket, last played for India in the Visakhapatnam Test match against England. Has finally received a call-up in the recently announced Indian squad, which is set to tour Sri Lanka to play three T20 matches and three ODIs. Now, he has been called up to take part in the ODI series.
Perfect batter for No. 4 slot in ODIs for India
It is important to note that a few months ago, Shreyas Iyer showed immense promise as India’s regular No. 4 slot batter. However, he quickly lost his BCCI central contract and faced exile. Also not being considered for the T20 World Cup 2024, despite leading KKR to an IPL victory as captain. Gautam Gambhir’s appointment as head coach of India has now opened doors for him, as Gambhir was the mentor of KKR when Iyer led the franchise to IPL success.
It’s noteworthy that Iyer lost his BCCI contract due to a dispute arising when he didn’t follow BCCI’s instructions to play domestic cricket.
Injuries has also kept right-handed batter out of contention
Also, recurring back issues has troubled him, affecting his contention. However, things seem to be back on track now. It will be interesting to see how he performs on this tour, especially with the Champions Trophy approaching. With several emerging players eyeing for the No. 4 position, it will be a treat to watch how he seizes this opportunity.
India ODIs squad for Sri Lanka Tour
ODI Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Ꮪhubman Gill (VC), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Riyan Parag, Axar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshit Rana.