Can Shreyas Iyer be the highly contentious No. 4 for India?
India have tasted a lot of success in recent years in the limited-overs format, but the No. 4 slot is still haunting them. Since Yuvraj Singh's decline, India have failed to cement any other player at that crucial position for more than a couple of years.
When the dominant top three fail to score in crunch matches, the middle order falls apart. That is not a sign of a healthy team.
The ICC World Cup 2019 saw India struggling to get their No. 4 right. Starting from KL Rahul to Vijay Shankar and then Rishabh Pant, India couldn't find the player that would suit the role. And they paid the price for that in the semi-finals against the Kiwis.
After the completion of the tournament, the selectors and the team management decided to go in with some new faces that could fill the void and help the team prepare for the T20 World Cup 2020. They decided to bring in Manish Pandey and Shreyas Iyer, who have been impressive in their India A games over the last few months.
Both Pandey and Iyer have played a decent number of games for India, amply showing their potential and talent. But while Pandey had made his ODI and T20I debut a couple of years before Iyer, he had failed to capitalise on the opportunities provided to him.
Pandey's only notable performance came against Australia at the SCG in 2016, when he scored an unbeaten 104 to guide India to a memorable victory.
Iyer, on the other hand, has proved his mettle time and again with his technique and shot-making. His calm temperament led Delhi Capitals to the knockouts of the IPL 2019 - the first time Delhi had reached that stage since 2012.
The last couple of series suggest that India have decided to put their faith in Iyer as a mainstay in the middle order, and that they would like to continue with him. But he has mostly been slotted in at No. 5, with Pant occupying the crucial No. 4 spot.
Iyer has shown signs of cementing his position in the middle order, and could end the No. 4 conundrum if given a chance. In the recently concluded series against West Indies, Iyer scored two consecutive half-centuries and justified his selection. With Pant struggling at No. 4, the time might be right to promote Iyer above him.
Iyer looks like a compact player in the middle with a good head on his shoulders. It is not unreasonable to expect him to fill the void left by Yuvraj Singh.
If India are looking at Iyer as their No. 4 for the upcoming series and the ICC tournaments, then they should persist with him and give him a good number of matches at that position. If the captain and team management give Iyer the confidence to go out and play freely, he can surely make use of his talent and become a match-winner for the team.
Follow Sportskeeda for all the updates on India vs South Africa head to head, India vs South Africa schedule 2019, news, results, points table, most runs, most wickets and fantasy tips.