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Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif has given an important piece of advice to the captain Shreyas Iyer as the Men in Blue set to face Zimbabwe in the three-match T20I series. Kaif wants Shreyas Iyer to support leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi and give him full confidence after his recent struggles.
Kaif said that if a player keeps worrying about getting dropped, he can never play fearless cricket, so he wants Iyer to show complete faith in Bishnoi in the upcoming T20I series in Zimbabwe, starting on Thursday, July 23, at the Harare Cricket Stadium in Harare. Earlier, Prabhsimran Singh impressed by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's batting, shares experience.
Mohammad Kaif wants Shreyas Iyer to trust Ravi Bishnoi
Ravi Bishnoi returned to the Indian squad only after Varun Chakravarthy was ruled out with an injury. However, the young spinner failed to deliver on the England tour. He conceded 60 runs in his four overs in the second T20I at Manchester.
He also bowled three no-balls, and after that match, he was dropped from the playing XI, but he is now back with the team for the Zimbabwe series. Amid this, Dinesh Karthik slams England's 'IPL blame game', David Lloyd hits back in fiery exchange.
Mohammad Kaif feels Shreyas Iyer should sit with Ravi Bishnoi and assure him that he will get enough chances in the T20I team. The cricket pundit believes that Bishnoi should know that one poor performance will not decide his future in the team.
Mohammad Kaif was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz: “Bishnoi only played one match in England before he was dropped. I want to see Iyer handle Bishnoi well. Tell him, 'Brother, no matter how you play, you will get the full series.' At least give him the chance. If you give him just one match and then drop him, then there will be insecurity in the team.”
Don't let Ravi Bishnoi lose confidence: Kaif urges Shreyas Iyer
The former India batter believes that T20 cricket needs fearless players, and that confidence comes only when the captain backs the players, who should not play with the fear of losing their spots in the team after one bad performance. He feels insecurity can further derail Bishnoi’s form.
Kaif further explained, “A player coming into the team witnessing this might think that if he does not perform in one match, he might get dropped. If you don't come in with the attacking style without any pressure, then you will lag behind in T20 cricket. So, in my opinion, Bishnoi, especially, assure him that you will play all matches, so bowl freely.”
Even before the England series, Bishnoi struggled while playing for Rajasthan Royals in the recent IPL 2026, where he managed to take only 11 wickets in nine matches. His struggles forced the Rajasthan Royals to prefer the young spinner Yash Raj Punja ahead of Bishnoi.
Shreyas Iyer calls for unity as young India looks to bounce back
Earlier, Shreyas Iyer had asked his teammates to ignore outside criticism and stay focused on playing good cricket together after poor results on the England tour.
He said at the pre-match press conference, "I have to convey this message that whatever talks are happening outside, what people will say, we don't have to think much about that. We have to stay in the present day. The more we play good cricket, the more we play with unity as a team, and the team will benefit. We will think about the individual later.”
