Dharamsala: Shreyas Iyer relishes finishing off games, but, on the back of his excellent run in the T20Is against Sri Lanka, he has expressed his desire to bat at No.3, the place which is normally reserved for Virat Kohli.
Shreyas, who got a chance in the side after Kohli was given a bio-bubble rest following the second T20I against the West Indies, cracked three 50s against Sri Lanka to ensure a 3-0 sweep for the hosts.
“I’m not keeping any expectations from myself or from the team coaches because if you see the competition in our team, it’s immense,” Shreyas said in an interview for ‘BCCI.tv’. Every individual is capable of winning you games. Personally I want to enjoy each and every moment and opportunity, which I’ve been provided with,” he added.
Given a choice however, Shreyas said that he would prefer batting at No 3. “Obviously in this format, top-three is the only place where you can pace your innings pretty well. Otherwise if you bat down the order you can’t give yourself time you need to start going from ball one. “So yeah, if I had to say the best number to bat for me personally, it’s obviously No. 3,” asserted the Mumbaikar.
Shreyas is not losing sleep over keeping his place in what is shaping up to be a formidable middle-order. He instead is ‘cherishing’ his good form in the run-up to the T20 World Cup. He is aware of the cut-throat competition in the team.
“Personally, I want to cherish this moment, I’ve achieved really good totals in the series,” Shreyas, who scored 204 runs at a strike rate of 174 said. “I want to relax a bit, give myself time and not think much beyond because it’s something that is not in my hand. If I start thinking about those things, I won’t be able to focus on my game,” he pointed out.
Shreyas now has four 50s in his last five matches that include an 80 against West Indies in an ODI earlier this month. However, he still doesn’t feel he has cemented his place in the squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia. “I can’t talk about cementing my place because as I mentioned earlier as well, the competition is so much,” he pointed out.