Sanjay Manjrekar Reveals the Reason for Shreyas Iyer's Test Team Axing

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar commented on Shreyas Iyer's omission from Team India's squad for the Test against England. He believes Batter's recent performances have cost him his place in the team. Shreyas Iyer was not included in the Indian squad for the last three Tests against England. He was dropped from the team due to his poor performances in Test cricket in recent times. He was also under a lot of scrutiny for his extreme outings.

Shreyas Iyer was expected to play a big role in the Test series against England. But it proved to be the biggest disappointment for the team in those two matches. It wasn't like he was struggling to get going. He started but failed to convert and scored low. Shreyas Iyer scored 35, 13, 27 and 29 in four innings in the ongoing Test series against England. Known as the best batsman of spin, the right-hander destroyed the spinners and his wicket put pressure on the team every time. Time.

Sanjay Manjrekar feels that Shreyas Iyer had a good chance in the last match but he didn't cash it. He added that despite a long run, Batter failed to make an impression. “In his last innings I thought Shubman Gill was able to cash in and score first in South Africa. So what have we seen with this team management and the new selection committee. He gives the players decent runs and it's not just the domestic series but Shreyas Iyer's recent performance in Test cricket has cost him a spot in the team."

While talking about Shreyas Iyer's future in Tests, Sanjay Manjrekar feels that the batsman has lost his Test match skills in an effort to strengthen his skills in white-ball cricket. He added:

“T20, 50 overs, he looks very good. He also had a very good World Cup. And you are working on the skills required for T20 and 50 overs. Like it or not and it is inevitable, you are actually reducing your test match skills. Your improvement in white-ball cricket, batting especially, comes at the cost of your Test match batting which is mostly about leaving the ball outside the off-stump and playing it closer to the bat."

Just develop a game where he has confidence in defense - Sanjay Manjrekar on Shreyas Iyer
Sanjay Manjrekar said that Shreyas Iyer needs to decide which format he wants to prioritize. He added that if a batter wants to top Test cricket, he needs to develop a game where he has confidence in defence. He added: 
“Two things you never want to do in T20. Basically, he has to decide which format to try and excel in. If Test matches remain his priority, he just needs to work on his defensive game, be it pace and bounce or spin.

"Just develop a game where he's confident in defense. Then when he takes an offensive route, it's like an extension of the defensive game where he's trying to dominate and not escape pressure or release pressure by playing a counter-attacking game.

It remains to be seen how Shreyas Iyer's future will be in Test cricket. Along with Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan and KL Rahul, it will be difficult for him to make a comeback.