'He batted with authority and conviction': Laxman picks between Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer for 1st England ODI
With Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya almost certainties, the big toss-up will be between Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav, for the all-important No. 4 position.
All eyes will be on India's opening combination and the middle order when they take on England in the first of the three ODIs in Pune on Tuesday. After experimenting with several changes at the top of the order in the T20 leg, it seems as if India will stick with Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan as far as the openers, a scenario that was confirmed by captain Virat Kohli on the eve of the match.
The return of Rohit and Dhawan bodes well for India. With 4802 runs from 107 innings, Rohit and Dhawan's opening pair is the fourth most successful in ODIs. But while that solves one conundrum, selecting the middle-order remains a bit of a puzzle for Kohli. With Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya almost certainties, the big toss-up will be between Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav, for the all-important No. 4 position.
Former India batsman VVS Laxman feels it is difficult to choose between the two since both are fine batsmen; however, just for the control with which Iyer has batted for India, at several different positions in the batting order, Laxman is tilted towards the more experienced player of the two.
"I think it is very difficult to just choose one among both, Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer, because what really interests me was the way Shreyas Iyer batted at No. 6. He batted with authority, conviction and just understood the situation and played his shots right from the word go. Because we know that he is ideally suited for No. 4. He has done so well in both one-dayers and T20Is in that position, but for the first time I have seen him bat at No. 6, and he didn't disappoint anyone," Laxman said on the Cricket Connected Show on Star Sports.
"Suryakumar Yadav is also someone who has got the talent, but with experience, I feel Shreyas Iyer will be my pick ahead of Suryakumar Yadav. Because we just can't rely on one or two innings and we cannot really discount Shreyas Iyer's performances in international cricket. Yes, Suryakumar Yadav has done really well for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, but Shreyas Iyer has been very consistent in whatever opportunities he got at the highest level. So, I will always choose Shreyas Iyer to do that role."
Suryakumar proved to be a revelation for India in the England T20Is. After not getting to bat on his India debut and getting dropped from the next game, the Mumbai batsman got the opportunity in the crucial fourth T20I, where he smacked a six off the first ball and scored an important half-century. With India needing a win to stay alive, Suryakumar's 31-ball 57 lifted the total to 185, which proved to be enough.
Later, in the decider, Suryakumar blasted 32 off 17 balls to keep the momentum intact. As far as getting a game in the ODIs is concerned, Laxman doesn't seem too optimistic about Suryakumar's chances, only because others around him have been proven performers.
"I actually don’t know whether he will get to play in the playing XI and that’s the depth in this Indian team. Whether you take Test, one-day or T20I cricket, Suryakumar Yadav doesn’t get into the playing XI just because there are others who have performed exceedingly well in international cricket. Yes, he’s in form, but I would definitely go with players, who have shown that consistency in international cricket. So, for me, he won’t get into the playing XI in the first ODI." Laxman pointed out.
