"Flexible, ready to bat anywhere....": Shreyas Iyer ahead of ICC Champions Trophy

India's ICC Champions Trophy campaign will kickstart with a clash against Bangladesh on February 20, followed by a match against arch-rivals Pakistan on February 23 and then a match against New Zealand on March 2. India will be playing its matches in Dubai under hybrid model, instead of Pakistan. While the team has not been announced yet officially, fans are anticipating Iyer to light up the tournament after he enjoyed a rich run of form across all formats of the game at domestic level last year, winning four trophies, including the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Syed Mushtaq Trophy (SMAT) as a captain.

Indian batter Shreyas Iyer said that he would like to continue as a middle-order batter for India during the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy, adding that he is flexible as a batter and can play at any spot. India's ICC Champions Trophy campaign will kickstart with a clash against Bangladesh on February 20, followed by a high-volateg game against arch-rivals Pakistan on February 23 and then a match against New Zealand on March 2. India will be playing its matches in Dubai under hybrid model, instead of Pakistan.

While the team has not been announced yet officially, fans are anticipating Iyer to light up the tournament after he enjoyed a rich run of form across all formats of the game at domestic level last year, winning four trophies, including the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Syed Mushtaq Trophy (SMAT) as a captain. Speaking in an interview with ESPNCricinfo, Iyer said on playing Champions Trophy as a middle-order batter, "Absolutely (if he would like to continue as a middle-order batter). I'm flexible and ready to bat anywhere in the batting order. KL and I, we played that important role in the middle during the World Cup (in 2023). We had a great season together. It was just the last bit [the final] that we could not execute the way we wanted to. It will be a proud moment for me if I were to be picked in the Champions Trophy side to represent the country."

Iyer's ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 campaign was an all-time great campaign as far as middle-order batters are concerned. He ended as the tournament's seventh-highest run-getter with 530 runs in 11 matches at an average of 66.25 and a strike rate of 113.24, with the best score of 128*. He made two centuries and three fifities in the tournament. He became the first middle-order batter to smash 500-plus runs in a single World Cup edition. The previous best-run tally by a middle-order batter in a single World Cup was by New Zealand's Scott Styris. In the 2007 edition of the tournament, Styris smashed 499 runs at an average of 83.16, with one century and four fifties in nine innings.

Iyer's standout moment came in the semifinals, when he scored 105 in just 70 deliveries against New Zealand, with four boundaries and eight sixes. His runs came at a strike rate of 150. In the match, Iyer was at his most fierce. He smashed 105 in just 70 balls. His knock consisted of four boundaries and eight sixes. He struck his runs at a strike rate of 150. It was the fastest-ever in a Cricket World Cup knockout match. He surpassed legendary Australian wicketkeeper-batter Adam Gilchrist, who smashed a 72-ball ton against Sri Lanka in the 2007 WC final.

Iyer has been sensational for India in ODIs, scoring 2,421 runs in 62 matches and 57 innings at an average of 47.47, with five centuries and 18 fifties. His best score is 128*. He has batted at number four for the majority of his career, scoring 1,397 runs in 33 innings at an average of 51.74 and a strike rate of 101.74, with four centuries and eight fifties. Also, while playing for Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the next IPL season this year, Iyer said that he would like to bat as an anchor at number three who once settles well, finishes the match on a high.

"That is how I started playing my cricket in the past, when I was representing DC. Also, when we were brainstorming with Ricky, this was the position [we spoke about] for me to be in," he added. "I feel that I'm flexible. I can bat at any position, as I did in KKR, but still some people think that my numbers weren't that great. But if you go and see the numbers and the positions at which I batted, the strike rate and also the average and combined all that, it benefited the team in every possible way. It's just that perception people create from the outside, that this particular batsman should be batting at this [position in the] order. I am not that kind of a thinker. I love to be flexible. I can bat at any [position]. If my team demands I bat at a certain position, I would do that," he concluded.

Forced out of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) central contracts last year due to alleged lack of red-ball cricket commitment and dedication, Iyer had a fairytale ending to 2024, winning four trophies, including 42nd Ranji Trophy title, Irani Cup, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with Mumbai and IPL 2024 with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), with latter two as captain. Not only Iyer thrived as captain, he was also in top form as a batter across all formats, except for a brief dry run with India in England Tests and Sri Lanka ODIs. In 44 matches across all formats, Iyer made 1,841 runs at an average of 43.83, with four centuries and seven fifties and the best score of 233. Also, he secured a deal of Rs 26.75 crores with Punjab Kings (PBKS), becoming the second-most expensive player in the league. He will be captaining the team alongside coach Ricky Ponting. (ANI)

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