Shreyas Iyer challenged with short-ball ploy upon Ranji Trophy return

The highlight of his run-a-ball 48 was the 54th over of the innings that saw Shreyas playing two sterling pulls and a crisp cover-drive to the fence to enter the forties.

FILE PHOTO: Shreyas Iyer playing a short ball in the Test match between India and South Africa. | Photo Credit: AFP

Even before Bhupen Lalwani and Suved Parkar had crossed boundary line after lunch was called on Day One of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy tie against Andhra, Shreyas Iyer – the next batter in Mumbai’s order – had taken guard at the practice nets on the sidelines.

While batting coach Vinit Indulkar and a side-arm specialist hurled short balls at him, Atharva Ankolekar bowled left-arm spin to Shreyas, who batted flawlessly for almost half an hour.

Having returned from South Africa earlier in the week and omitted from the T20I squad for India’s ongoing series against Afghanistan, Shreyas had skipped the team’s pre-match training session on Thursday. The short session appeared to be a routine to get a feel of the conditions.

Half an hour after resumption, Shreyas took guard again – this time where it mattered – after opener Bhupen Lalwani had perished. The next eighty-four minutes saw Shreyas dealing with a consistent bowling attack without any fuss.

It didn’t come as a surprise that soon after he had got his eye in – and Suved Parkar at his patient best at the other end – Andhra employed the short-ball ploy, with a 6-3 field on the on-side, against him.

While Shreyas had faced the side-armers over the wicket, for most of his innings, the Andhra pacers, especially Nithish Kumar Reddy, preferred bowling around the wicket to him. Captain Ricky Bhui and senior pro Hanuma Vihari did their best to unsettle Shreyas by employing innovative fielding positions.

But Shreyas was patient. He left the ball well and forced debutant PVSN Raju into errors. It displayed in his fluent on-drive and a pull. Very soon, a crowd had gathered on the terrace of a corporate building across the road to enjoy Shreyas’ batting.

There were no loud cheers, but Shreyas was coming into his element nevertheless. The highlight of his run-a-ball 48 was the 54th over of the innings that saw Shreyas playing two sterling pulls and a crisp cover-drive to the fence to enter the forties.

Three overs hence, and six minutes before Tea, Shreyas fell prey to Nithish bowling around the wicket and wide of off-stump. He chased a wide one and the edge rested in wicketkeeper UMS Girinath’s gloves.

“We actually planned the bouncers for Shreyas, but since we were conceding too many runs, that’s when we came to the normal plan and we bowled full. And it worked,” Nithish would reveal after the day’s play.

The crowd from the terrace across the road soon disappeared and Shreyas’ return to Ranji Trophy after five years remained without him celebrating a landmark.