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Shreyas Iyer, who came in to bat in the 23rd over, departed for just 15, despite being in brilliant touch earlier this month.
Shreyas Iyer doesn’t look set for the long haul, Sanjay Manjrekar has said. (Picture credit: AFP)
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has said that Shreyas Iyer does not give the impression of someone who will be around for the long haul. At the same time, Shubman Gill, who scored a century in India’s opening game of the Champions Trophy, assures of being in the mix for the long run, Manjrekar said.
Gill put up a brilliant show on his Champions Trophy debut, scoring a 129-ball 101 in the opening game against Bangladesh, while chasing a respectable 229-run target set by the opponents.
On the other hand, Iyer, who had come in after the fall of Virat Kohli in the 23rd over, departed for a 17-ball 15, despite being in brilliant form coming into the tournament on the back of a successful ODI series against England.
“He [Gill] is batting at the right position to make a huge impact. When he gets a hundred, like today, it seems like there is plenty left in the tank. It was like 60% of Shubman Gill is enough to get a hundred like this and he stays till the end,” Manjrekar said while speaking on ESPNCricinfo.
“That is the difference between Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill that Gill will take you right till the end. He is somebody who you think is going to be around for 10-15 years. Shreyas Iyer, despite his obvious talent, doesn’t give you that impression,” Manjrekar added.
Notably, Iyer scored 59, 44 and 78 in three innings in the England ODIs and was expected to put up another show when he smacked two boundaries early in his innings. But Mustafizur Rahman got the better of him in the 28th over.
On the other hand, Gill finished not out on 101 against Bangladesh and played a match-winning role in the chase in Dubai on Thursday. He faced 129 deliveries and smacked nine boundaries and two sixes in his innings and ensured India went past the target with six wickets and 21 deliveries to spare.
Gill scored his slowest ODI half-century, off 69 deliveries and then got to his century in 125 deliveries, the slowest for an Indian batter in ODIs in the last six years, but it served the purpose well for India.
India play arch-rivals Pakistan in their second group-stage game on Sunday, February 23 in Dubai. Iyer scored an unbeaten 53 during the 2023 ODI World Cup match against Pakistan in Ahmedabad.
