Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi? When Indian batsman Shreyas Iyer had his say on football's GOAT debate
Indian batsman Shreyas Iyer had picked Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi in an old tweet that has resurfaced. This comes after his century in the semifinals of the 2023 Cricket World Cup against New Zealand on Wednesday (November 15).
Shreyas Iyer hosted a Q&A session during the COVID-19 lockdown back in March 2020. One of the fans posed to him an age-old question, asking him to choose between Messi or Ronaldo and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain went with the latter.
Shreyas Iyer's tweet answering the same can be seen below:
It is worth mentioning that Shreyas Iyer is not the only Indian superstar to have favored Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi. Indian superstar Virat Kohli has been a Ronaldo fan for many years.
According to CricTracker, Kohli has previously termed the Al-Nassr superstar a complete player and a great goalscorer. Iyer is yet another star batsman to join the Ronaldo bandwagon in the Indian setup.
It, however, is worth noting that there have been instances where Indian cricketers have opted for Lionel Messi over his Portugal rival. According to All About Football app, legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar and wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik both went with the 2022 World Cup-winning superstar.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are currently on international duty
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are currently with their respective national team setups ahead of the international break.
Ronaldo is currently with the Portugal squad with them set to face Liechtenstein and Iceland in the Euro 2024 qualifiers. The games do not mean much for the A Selecao as they have already booked their place in next year's showpiece tournament in Germany.
Cristiano Ronaldo has played a vital role in helping his side secure qualification for the 2024 European Championships. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has so far scored nine goals in seven appearances. This includes four braces in total against Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovakia.
Lionel Messi, on the other hand, is currently with the Argentina national team with them set to face Uruguay and Brazil in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The defending champions are currently top of the CONMEBOL table, having won all four of their opening games.
Messi has played three of those games and has scored three goals along the way. This includes a brace against Peru in their previous qualifying game last month. He also scored the only goal against Bolivia in the opening game of the qualification process.