Former India batter Cheteshwar Pujara has backed Shreyas Iyer’s credentials as a T20I captain but said the England series will be a serious test of Iyer’s batting form. Pujara believes Iyer has already proven his leadership qualities in franchise cricket, but now needs to deliver with the bat as India prepare for a demanding five-match T20I series.
Iyer has had a difficult start since taking over the captaincy, with India losing his first two matches in charge and the batter managing only 13 runs across the series while batting at No. 4. His returns were also modest in the recent ODI series against Afghanistan, where he scored 12 and 26 in the first two matches before finishing unbeaten on 20 after being pushed up to No. 3 in Chennai.
“I don’t have doubts about Shreyas Iyer as a captain, but as a batter, he will face a lot of challenges and he has to prove himself as a batter. As a captain, he has done a phenomenal job in the IPL for the Punjab team and that’s why he has been brought in as a captain,” Cheteshwar Pujara said on Star Sports.
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“He is the experienced player in that squad and he is a proactive captain. He leads from the front and gives a lot of freedom to the players.”
Pujara’s warning comes at an important time for India, who cannot afford another series loss as they look to reset against a strong England side. The hosts possess serious firepower in Harry Brook, Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Tom Banton, Jordan Cox, Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks, which means India’s bowlers will have to be sharper than they were against Ireland.
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In both T20Is against Ireland, India’s attack started well but lost control in the middle overs, allowing the opposition to recover and finish strongly. England’s deeper batting line-up could punish any repeat of that pattern, so India will need a more disciplined effort from their spinners and support bowlers. Axar Patel, Suryansh Shedge and Washington Sundar, in particular, will be expected to do more after struggling to make a major impact so far.
