“I wasn’t able to hold my grip” - Shreyas Iyer on battling cramps during his ton in IND vs AUS 2nd ODI
Team India batter Shreyas Iyer has revealed that he was hampered by cramps to such an extent towards the end of his innings in the Indore ODI that he wasn’t even able to hold his grip. He added that he made his mind up to go after the bowling and see how many runs he could get.
Shreyas was named Player of the Match for his brilliant 105 off 90 balls as India hammered Australia by 99 runs [DLS method] in the second ODI in Indore on Sunday.
The right-handed batter struck 11 fours and three sixes, adding 200 for the second wicket with Shubman Gill (104 off 97). Courtesy of a strong batting effort, India ended up scoring 399/5 batting first and then held Australia to 217 after they were set a revised DLS target of 317 in 33 overs.
Towards the end of his innings, Shreyas suffered from cramps, which severely hampered his ability to bat. At a post-match press conference, the batter opened up on his struggles and said:
“I am okay right now because I have fielded almost 30 overs after that, but I was getting serious cramps. I wasn’t able to hold my grip. Even the caught and bowled which happened [decision was overturned], the time he [Sean Abbott] delivered the ball, my hand literally got stuck over there and I just played with my bottom hand."
“Also, the umpires gave me an indication that you won’t be able to call the physios again. So, I was bit anxious at that time, didn’t know what to do. My mind was a little bit down in the dumps, but I just told myself that this is the time you need to get into the beast mode and see whatever you get from here on,” he added.
After surviving a caught and bowled chance in the 31st over, Shreyas perished a few balls later, miscuing an attempted big hit.
“I am flexible at whatever number I get to bat” - Shreyas
Shreyas usually bats at No. 4 in ODIs. However, with Virat Kohli rested, the right-hander came into bat at No. 3 in the first two one-dayers against Australia. He asserted that he is happy to bat anywhere the team wants him to.
“Management has told me that I would be batting at this particular number. I am flexible at whatever number I get to bat, whatever the team requires at that point of time. If I have to go lower down the order or up the order, I'm fine with it,” Shreyas said.
Meanwhile, India and Australia will meet in the third ODI in Rajkot on Wednesday.