IND vs SL: Fantastic Knock, You Will Enjoy It As Many Times You See It - Irfan Pathan On Shreyas Iyer's 92 In Pink-Ball Test

Former Indian player Irfan Pathan lauded Shreyas Iyer for his fabulous knock against Sri Lanka on Saturday at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on the first day of the Pink-Ball Day-Night Test affair.

Iyer scored 92 runs off 98 balls as India posted a decent score of 252 in the first innings, the hosts stumbled to 126 for five wickets down in the early part of the day. Just after wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant’s dismissal, Iyer hit three boundaries to Sri Lanka spinner Lasith Embuldeniya in an over.

IND vs SL: Shreyas Iyer missed century in the pink-ball Test

Iyer switched gears the moment tail-enders joined him at the crease, he started bringing the big shots against the Sri Lankan spinners Embuldeniya and Praveen Jayawickrama. He smashed 10 boundaries and four sixes in the course of his gritty knock.

Despite getting a reprieve after being dropped by Kusal Mendis off Jayawickrama’s bowling in the 58th over, Iyer was dismissed by the same bowler as he went down the track to hit a big shot but missed it and Sri Lanka keeper Niroshan Dickwella dislodged the bails from behind the wickets.

It was an innings of the highest class: Irfan Pathan on Shreyas Iyer

Iyer got a rousing ovation from the crowd in the stands as he walked back to the dressing room after the end of his stupendous innings. Irfan said that the Mumbai player had clear thoughts in his mind and it was visible in his shot selection.

“It was an innings of the highest class. His footwork was precise, both moving forward and back, stepping out and playing the big shots or playing the creative shots. It was an amazing knock, he impressed a lot,” Irfan told Star Sports. 

“The control was because of the clarity of thought, whether to play forward or back, and that is why a high percentage of good shots were seen. Fantastic knock, you will enjoy it as many times you see it. You won’t get to see such knocks on turnings tracks often,” he added. 

Sri Lanka were reduced to 86/6 with Niroshan Dickwella (13) and Lasith Embuldeniya (0) batting for the visitors at the end of the gameplay on Day 1.

Also Read: IND vs SL: Shreyas Iyer Has His Take On Bengaluru Pitch For Pink-Ball Test