What Shreyas Iyer's latest set back could potentially mean for India
Sep 10, 2023
New Delhi [India], September 10 : India batter Shreyas Iyer's latest setback has raised some questions about India's middle order setup or could have potentially answered the question that head coach Rahul Dravid has been seeking for so long.
Iyer suffered from back spasms moments before the beginning of India's rain-interrupted clash against Pakistan in the Asia Cup Super Four Clash on Sunday.
India skipper Rohit Sharma confirmed his absence at the time of the toss and said, "One forced change, Shreyas Iyer just got a back spasm so KL Rahul comes in for him."
"Forced change", Rohit's words can offer a plethora of meanings depending on one's perspective. Even though, in his absence, Rahul made his much-awaited return to the playing XI, looking sharp and hungry for runs.
With Rahul once again in the mix and Iyer's extent of injury yet to be determined, Dravid's concern about the middle-order setup could once and forever be solved?
As of now, five players are competing for the two spots unless India decides to go with a different plan and as a result, a third spot opens up.
As things stand, Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson remain highly unlikely to feature in the playing XI as they are quite below in the pecking order. The number of chances on offer before the World Cup are quite limited and Ishan Kishan with his form is likely to start ahead of the much-experienced pair.
The only two players who stood ahead of him were Iyer and Rahul. Former Indian cricketers have backed the duo to surmount their places in the playing XI and act as the backbone of the Indian team.
But Kishan continues to challenge the notion, by offering a different approach and a left-handed option to a team that is facing a major scarcity in that department.
The 25-year-old is still a bit new to the format but has the knowledge of scoring big runs. He has already scored a double-century in the ODI format against Bangladesh which is still a dream for many cricketers.
In 20 ODI matches, the young gun has scored 776 runs with a strike rate of 106.74 and an average of 48.50.
As Asia Cup heads towards its climax and India gears up to face Australia's challenge, Kishan, Rahul and Iyer (if fully fit) will be eying those magical scores with hopes of sealing their place in India's World Cup playing XI.
The young left-handed batter would fancy his chances to further help his cause by performing a memorable knock against Pakistan.
If weather permits, Kishan could be in action with bat against Pakistan as the game has headed towards the reserve day (Monday).
