NEW DELHI: India’s T20I captain Shreyas Iyer has received strong backing from his sister, Shresta Iyer, after another disappointing result against England in the 3rd T20I, extending his difficult start as the team’s full-time captain.In a video that has gone viral on social media, Shresta urged fans not to judge her brother solely by recent defeats and expressed confidence that he would go on to become one of India’s greatest captains.“Shubman Gill ho, Virat Kohli toh… legend, Rohit Sharma legend… again, Sachin Tendulkar legend. These people have also lost many matches. But if you just keep saying Shreyas Iyer, Shreyas Iyer, then maybe you will have a lot of problems… but I feel that he is amazing. He is a very different personality overall. I think he has a lot to give. No one else has as much power as him. Their power is to give so much. And the coming time is coming very soon, that time will come very soon, when we value Shreyas Iyer is one of the best captains of India. I believe it is already happening,” Shrestha told Filmigyan.Her remarks come after India suffered their biggest-ever defeat by runs in T20Is, with England thrashing them by 125 runs in the third T20I. The heavy loss further compounded Iyer’s struggles since taking over as India’s full-time T20I captain in July.
Tough start for captain Iyer
Iyer’s first assignment as full-time captain came against Ireland, where India lost the two-match series 2–0.The ongoing England series has also not gone India’s way. The opening T20I was washed out due to rain before India lost the second match by four wickets. The third T20I ended in a crushing 125-run defeat, leaving India trailing 0-2 in the five-match series.The numbers also paint a worrying picture.In his last 12 T20 matches as captain, Iyer has managed just one win while suffering 10 defeats. One match ended in no result.
India face must-win fourth T20I
India now has little room for error in the series. Trailing 0-2, they must win the fourth T20I against England at the County Ground in Bristol on Thursday to keep the five-match series alive.