Shreyas Iyer Breaks Silence After Winning His 1st Match As Indian Captain

Shreyas Iyer in action for India [Source: AFP]

Captain Shreyas Iyer got the ball rolling in his new role as India's captain as the Men in Blue defeated Zimbabwe in the first of the three T20Is in Harare on Thursday afternoon. This came as a big moment for Iyer, as he ended his 7-match winless streak since taking over the captaincy from the World Cup-winning Suryakumar Yadav. 

As India took the lead in the series with the 7-wicket win, Iyer remained unbeaten at 28 off 24, having already racked up a couple of fifties in his tenure previously.

Relieved Shreyas Iyer lauds Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Mayank Yadav

Having chosen to bowl first, fast bowlers, led by Mayank Yadav’s fierce spell of 2/18 (4), were in the thick of things in the first innings. 

They restricted Zimbabwe to 125/7 in 20 overs, and it was followed by mayhem from Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who scored his first international fifty and finished with 50 off 19 balls, with 4 fours and 4 sixes.

Shreyas Iyer was relieved after securing his first win as the Indian captain. He credited Mayank Yadav for giving the team a good start with the ball and for how he rotated the bowlers, who executed the plans well, before Sooryavanshi took over.

“Exceptional result! The bowlers were tremendous. Can't be happier to get my first win. I was anticipating the bounce, and there was a decent amount of bounce. Exceptional start given by Mayank. Didn't give them room,” Shreyas Iyer said in the post-match presentation. 

“Vaibhav came out and gave us an exceptional start with the bat. He is fearless; the way he approaches the innings is amazing. He possesses immense confidence when he steps onto the field. I think Vaibhav has played here; he got 175 in the U-19 World Cup final, so he knows the conditions here,” the Indian captain added. 

Also Read: Why Zimbabwe Players Are Wearing Special Jersey Against India? Reason Revealed

Iyer escaped an embarrassing record

Since being made the new India T20I captain, Shreyas Iyer is yet to win any series. He conceded India’s first-ever T20I series against Ireland by 0-2 earlier in June, followed by a 0-4 drubbing in the five-match series in England during the same tour of the UK.

Had India lost the series opener in Harare, Shreyas Iyer-led India would have gone past Pakistan on the list of teams with the longest winless streaks in T20Is among ICC full members. 

Longest Winless Streaks in Men's T20Is (Full Members):

9 – Sri Lanka (2019–2021)

8 – New Zealand (2007–2008)

8 – Sri Lanka (2017)

7 – Sri Lanka (2016–2017)

7 – Sri Lanka (2019)

7 – Pakistan (2019)

7 – New Zealand (2019–2020)

7 – West Indies (2024–2025)

7 – New Zealand (2025)

7 – India (2026) (Streak End Today)*

Moving ahead, he will look to stamp his authority and justify getting the role over some others in the playing XI by trying to comprehensively seal the three-game series at the same venue on Saturday, June 25.

Young guns pounce on the opportunity

Following the losses in Ireland and England, India decided to continue giving chances to a young group of bowlers in this tour of Zimbabwe.

Having won the T20 World Cup earlier this year, India have rested Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Varun Chakravarthy from the team and sent a group of fresh players to provide some international exposure.

After a long list of injuries, Mayank Yadav played for India after a couple of years and impressed with his seam movement and control, picking 2/18 (4). Prince Yadav also scalped 2/19 (4), while Ashok Sharma had a decent debut with the figures of 0/29 (4).

Despite being slightly low on confidence after being taken to the cleaners by England, Ravi Bishnoi bowled a tidy spell of 1/24 (4).

Furthermore, there are more potential debutants in the squad, including Yash Thakur and Prabhsimran Singh and more youngsters like all-rounder Harsh Dubey and Suryanash Shedge, looking to leave a mark, making the remaining games exciting to watch.

Also Read: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Snubbed! Why Did Mayank Yadav Win Player Of The Match In IND Vs ZIM 1st T20I?