Unwanted to undeniable: Shreyas Iyer’s T20I comeback with the Indian skipper

3 December 2023. This was the date when Shreyas Iyer last played a T20I game for India. That day in Bengaluru against Australia, the Mumbai batsman scored 53 off 37 balls at a strike rate of 143.24. He was in the squad for the New Zealand series just before the 2026 T20 World Cup, but could not find a place for the tournament.

All this would paint a bleak picture for the 31-year-old in terms of future selections with India for the tour of Ireland and England in June and July. But the whole dynamic has changed and Shreyas looks set to return to the team. And not only as a team member captain of the Indian team in the shortest format of the game.

Sources told India Today that Shreyas will replace his Mumbai teammate Suryakumar Yadav to usher in a new era for the Indian team after the T20 World Cup success. And now the prophecy has come true and Shreyas got the role.

“Shreyas absolutely deserves it. With the bat. Also his performances as captain when he won it once in KKR, couple of really good seasons with PBKS. It was unusual that he was not part of the T20I squad but now that he has found a place he deserves it,” Agarkar said.

Ricky Ponting, who worked closely with Shreyas, described why he thought the 31-year-old would one day captain India in T20Is.

The former Australian captain’s prediction pointing to his maturity as a batsman and player has now come true.

“There’s a reason why I spent as much money in the auction as I did a few years ago (on Iyer). He’s an outgoing guy, now a very mature player, a very mature leader. He keeps his emotions in check on the field for the most part. The respect he gets from his players is second to none.”

“The moment he stands in front of the group and speaks, not a single eyeball misses a single word he says.

“It’s great to see him back in the Indian team one day. I really think he has a bigger and brighter future in the Indian T20 team as well,” Ponting said.

And the call comes on the back of a sensational turnaround for Shreyas. So let’s take a look at the areas where he has improved, making him an undeniable option for the selectors. Shreyas Iyer has been in sensational form with the bat for PBKS in IPL 2026 (Photo: Reuters)

FIRING SOFTWARE UPDATE

Until 2023, Shreyas looked like any other T20I batter. It wasn’t that he wasn’t exceptional as his game against the spinners was always spot on. But with the constant evolution of the cue ball game, you have to constantly evolve your game.

Even when KKR won the IPL title in 2024, Shreyas’ batting software didn’t seem to be updated. His strike rate that season was 146.86, he hit 34 boundaries and 14 sixes and scored 351 runs from 15 matches.

These days, when a batsman hits 10 and 11 sixes in one game, those stats are just not good enough.

So Shreyas decided to release a few GB in his approach and decided to press the software update button.

What followed was sensational. 604 runs at a destructive rate of 175.07 in IPL 2025 as he led PBKS to the IPL final. In 2026, the same streak continued even though Punjab crashed and burned at the end.

Shreyas scored 498 runs at a rate of 168.81 and ended up with his first IPL hundred. His number of boundaries and sixes has increased in the last two seasons.

IPL 2025: 43 boundaries and 39 sixes

IPL 2026: 39 boundaries and 30 sixes

In addition, he became a master of the chase. Since 2025, he has scored seven fifties and a hundred in the IPL in the chase, equaling Virat Kohli.

This is exactly what India needed when they came in to replace someone like Suryakumar, who was the best T20I batsman in the world at one time.

Shreyas would easily fit in at No.4.

THE BRAVE CAPTAIN

Led by Suryakumar Yadav, India successfully retain their T20 title (Photo Reuters)

One of the things that stood out during Suryakumar’s tenure as T20I captain has been so proactive and fearless with his decisions.

Continuity will be key for India and Shreyas fits that mold as well. The PBKS captain is never one to shy away from pressure and ensure his players are given responsibility at key points in the game.

This was evident in the IPL 2024 season when he allowed Harshit Rana to take on the rampaging Heinrich Klaasen in a thriller in Kolkata.

He was also good at handling big name bowlers which was seen in his effective use of Mitchell Starc, Arshdeep Singh and Marc Jansen during his stint with KKR and PBKS.

The Indian team will see him get a completely different class of bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy and others. This is where Shreyas’ captaincy will sit and allow him to take India into a new era.

While it remains to be seen how Shreyas will perform as India’s captain, he has clearly shown that adaptability and reinvention are his calling cards.

The overhaul seems complete and all India will need is captain Shreyas firing from the start.

– The end

Published on:

07 Jun 2026 11:16 IST