"Definitely feel I can be a part of the Test team" - Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer believes he has it in him to be part of India's Test team in the near future. The middle-order batsman said his journey started with red-ball cricket in Mumbai and now he's itching to show his potential on the biggest stage. Iyer also exuded belief that the maiden call-up will come 'very soon'.
Shreyas Iyer's remarks come at a time when the Virat Kohli-led side, despite being tied 1-1 after three matches, are struggling with their middle-order in England. Suryakumar Yadav and Prithvi Shaw were called up as back-ups for the same, while Iyer missed out due to his recent recovery from injury.
"Whenever I open the Indian Cricket Team's page on Instagram, I personally feel that I need to be a part of that team because my journey started from red-ball and my Ranji Trophi and India 'A' scenarios have been really smooth so far. So, I feel that I can be a part of that team and help them definitely be as consistent as they are going right now. And it's definitely every kid's dream to play all formats and you know, it will happen very soon, I am positive about that," Shreyas Iyer told Sports Today's YouTube channel in an interview on Sunday.
The Delhi Capitals player also talked about why he and the players of his generation consider Test cricket to be the pennacle of their careers. He said:
"It tests you mentally and physically, both because five days, standing on the ground, it's not an easy task. I've done that in the past and you know, we used to play eight games back-to-back in the Ranji Trophy... that takes a lot of toll on your mind, it's a totally different level. Especially with the way the Indian team is going right now, I personally feel it would be fun to be a part of it."
Apart from collecting over 1000 white-ball runs in his 4-year-long career, Shreyas Iyer has been one of the most consistent batsmen on the domestic circuit. From 54 First-Class matches, the right-hander has accrued upwards of 4500 runs at a stellar average of 52.18. Iyer also has 12 hundreds and 23 fifities in the format.
"Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have raised the bar for all players" - Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer also spoke about the role and the impact of the two senior-most all-format players in the Indian team. He remarked that Kohli and Rohit Sharma have set and maintained a benchmark in terms of performance and team building that the next generation will try to follow.
"Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have raised the bar for all players in the team. All of us try to follow in their footsteps, try to be in their shoes and to [understand] what kind of mindset they go through. They have maintained that benchmark and our goal is to, you know, provide the same kind of energy to the upcoming youngsters in the team and also have a similar kind of mindset which becomes contagious," Iyer concluded.
Shreyas Iyer, now fully recovered from his shoulder injury, is in the UAE and will be back in action when the IPL 2021 resumes on September 19.