Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer, born on December 6, 1994, is a right-handed middle batsman who plays for India in the ODI and T20 format, for Mumbai in domestic cricket, and captain of Delhi capitals in the IPL. He has been one of the pillars of the Indian middle-order in the ODI’s over the last year and a half. He also played in the 2014 Under 19 Cricket World cup.

His nicknames are Shre and Young Viru. His hobbies are Swimming, watching and playing Football, Tennis and Golf. His favorite cricketer is AB De Villiers and his other favorite sportsmen are Roger Federer and Cristiano Ronaldo. His favorite shot is the Straight drive. He is also very fond of Tom & Jerry and Ferrari’s and is an ardent animal lover.

Shreyas Iyer won the 2015 IPL Emerging player award and is regarded as one of the young brigades that play a fearless and attacking brand of cricket. Since India’s number 4 batting position debacle in the 2019 World cup, Shreyas Iyer has been touted as the man for the job leading up to and at the forthcoming World Cup.

Family

Shreyas Iyer was born in Mumbai to Santosh Iyer, a businessman, and Rohini Iyer. His father was from a Tamil family with his roots in Kerala and his mother a Mangalorean Tulva. He also has a sister named Shresta Iyer.

Iyer did his schooling at Don Bosco High School, Mumbai, and College education from RA Poddar College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai.

Early age cricket and Under 19 Cricket World cup

Shreyas Iyer was first spotted by former Indian cricketer Pravin Amre at the age of 12 at Shivaji park and it was he who first took Iyer under his wings. Shreyas helped his college team to lift many trophies during his time there.

Iyer made his List A debut in the Vijay Hazare trophy in November 2014 on the back of his impressive showing earlier that year for the Trent Bridge Cricket team in the UK. He scored 273 runs at a phenomenal average of 54.60. Iyer then made his first-class debut in the Ranji Trophy the following month and scored a total of 809 runs at an average of 50.56 and was the 7th highest scorer of the tournament.

In the Under 19 World cup earlier in the year, Iyer was part of the Indian squad but did not get many opportunities. However, in the 3 matches he played, Iyer made 2 half-centuries and averaged an excellent 53.67 for the tournament.

Following his impressive showing in the Vijay Hazare trophy and the Ranji Trophy, Iyer was picked up by the Delhi Daredevils in the 2015 IPL auction for 2.6 Crores making him the highest-earning uncapped player then. He had a very good IPL justifying his pickup by scoring 439 runs at an impressive average of 33.76 and a strike rate of 128.36.

He backed up his impressive first season across formats with a stupendous second season in the Ranji Trophy 2015-16 scoring a whopping 1,321 runs with four centuries and seven fifties at a mind-boggling average of 73.39.

While he had quiet IPL in 2016, he came back with a solid Ranji season in 2016-2017 by scoring 725 runs at an average of 42.64. He followed it up with an excellent season in the IPL as well in 2017 scoring 338 runs at an average of 33.80 and a strike rate of 139. He also scored his highest first-class score of 202 against the visiting Australian team during this period in a 3-day practice match.

In 2018, Iyer was retained by Delhi in the IPL Auction on the back of his impressive showing in the previous season. He was also named as the captain of the team replacing Gautham Gambhir midway through the IPL and smashed a match-winning knock of 93 in 40 balls on his captaincy debut.

Later that year, he was also named as the Vice-captain of Mumbai for the 2018-2019 Vijay Hazare Trophy and the captain of India B’s squad for the 2018-19 Deodhar trophy. He ended up being the leading scorer in both the tournaments showcasing his ability to lead by example while being a leader in the side.

Iyer was retained as the captain of the Delhi Capitals in the IPL for 2019 and led the team to their first playoff berth in 7 years. He then led them to their first-ever finals in IPL 2020 where they finished runner up. He also scored an impressive 519 runs and 463 runs in the two IPL’s with numerous match-winning knocks.

Iyer also made the highest total by an Indian player in T20’s when he scored 147 in one of the earlier matches of the 2018-19 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Debut in Indian Cricket Team

Iyer was selected to the Indian test squad for the fourth test against Australia at home as cover for the Injured Virat Kohli in March 2017. This was as a result of his impressive and consistent performances in first-class cricket during the 2015 and 2016 seasons. He came on as a substitute fielder in that test and effected a runout.

In November 2017, Iyer was named to the Indian T20 squad for the series against New Zealand. He made his debut in the first T20 but did not get an opportunity to bat. He got his first opportunity coming in at number 3 during the second T20 and made a solid 23 off 21 balls.

Shreyas was then named in the ODI series against Sri Lanka later in November and made his debut in the first ODI of the series. He could only manage 9 runs as India went down 0-1 to the Lankans. However, he followed that with his first innings of substance for India compiling 88 of 70 balls in the 2nd ODI and a 63 ball 65 in the deciding ODI.

With a promising start to his ODI career, Iyer is seen as the missing piece to the Indian middle-order puzzle in the future. He is also expected to be a key player in the longer format given his enviable temperament and technique to go with his impressive first-class record.

Breakthrough Inning

Following an impressive start to his white-ball career for India, Iyer was in the playing eleven sporadically based on injuries to the other permanent members of the playing eleven. He played in the ODI’s in January 2018 against South Africa and also in the ODI’s against the West Indies in the second half of 2019.

He had made some valuable contributions till then with multiple 50’s coming in at number 4 and number 5 in the batting order but hadn’t played that one breakthrough inning yet.

The 2020 New Zealand tour was when Iyer cemented himself as the primary option in the Indian middle-order for white-ball cricket. He started the T20I series with a Man of the match performance where he made 58 of just 29 balls leading India in a run chase of 203. He followed that up with a good 44 in the 2nd T20 as India won both matches and the series 5-0.

With Iyer fast becoming a mainstay in the Indian white-ball team, having been part of the setup for close to two and a half years, he played his breakthrough inning in the first ODI of the New Zealand tour following his impressive showing in the T20’s.

Put into bat, the Indians were reduced to 54-2 when Iyer walked in to join captain Virat Kohli. He was then part of two-century partnerships with Kohli and KL Rahul that laid the platform for India to compile a massive total of 347 in their 50 overs. In the process, Iyer got to his maiden international century showing tremendous grit and composure with an uncanny ability to pick gaps in the middle overs as he made 103 of 107 balls.

This inning and the tour of New Zealand in itself is seen as his breakthrough in international cricket as Iyer finally converted one of his impressive 50’s to a 100, going from defense to attack seamlessly while building an inning, displaying terrific calm and composure. It also bodes well for a team that has been trying to identify the man to bat at number 4 long term.

Future in Cricket

Shreyas Iyer has been successful in establishing himself very early in all forms from Domestic to International Cricket. Boasting a highly impressive average of 52 in first-class cricket, close to 45 for India in the ODI’s and the mid-’30s in the IPL, while also captaining his side admirably in the IPL, he is seen as the future of India’s middle-order in all formats in the coming years.

Given his success as captain for the Delhi Capitals over the last 2 seasons, he is also seen as a future captain for India. The next step for Iyer is to nail down the number 4 position in ODI’s and T20’s for India as it became the key factor that cost India the 2019 World cup. He is also expected to eventually be a key member of the test side given his impressive first-class numbers.

His performances over the last 5 years for India, Mumbai, and the Delhi Capitals have shown that he is a cricketer with the caliber of taking Indian cricket to new heights in the future both as a batsman and a leader.