Shreyas Iyer could be promoted up to No. 4 in the 3rd T20I in place of Rishabh Pant

[TNAmarkFromIndia]

Rishabh Pant seeking advice from India’s batting coach Vikram Rathore.(AP)

 

India’s top three batsmen will continue to leave the worrying to South Africa’s bowling attack while the hosts themselves could effect a minor tweak by promoting the dependable Shreyas Iyer in the final game of the three-match T20 series at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday. Though India have opted for a relatively inexperienced bowling attack for this series as they build up for next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia, there were no hiccups in notching up a seven-wicket victory at Mohali in the second game after restricting South Africa to a modest score.

 

The first contest of the three-match series in Dharamsala was washed out. South Africa’s hopes of squaring the series will lie on bringing India’s young bowlers under pressure at a venue that favours batsmen. For India though, Iyer’s current form assures stability in the middle order.

 

With pressure building on Rishabh Pant after another cheap dismissal in Mohali batting at No 4, the two could be asked to swap batting spots on Sunday.

 

Praise for Iyer

 

Shikhar Dhawan, who made 40 as the top three aggregated 124 runs (Virat Kohli 72*, Rohit Sharma 12) chasing 150, praised Iyer for his recent efforts. “As they (selectors) are trying out youngsters it is good to give them a good run. You saw in the last match how Shreyas finished the game. You can see from his body language that he is confident, believes in himself. He is just 24 and is doing it so well; he did it in the West Indies,” Dhawan said at a media conference on Saturday.

Edited September 22, 2019 by TNAmarkFromIndia

[Khota]

He should be. Iyer is a specialist batsman and Pant is not.

[Straight Drive]

Pant should not bat below 3 in T20i format. Pandey, Iyer and similar types who lack hitting abilities should bat lower than him.

[nevada]

Just go back one innings and Pant had a match-winning 65. While I also believe that 5 is probably a better suited position for him than 4, if I needed quick runs I would still send him in at 4. It is T20, don't over complicate things! Pant's muscle memory is filled with attacking shots, don't ruin that with over strategizing.

[ShoonyaSifar]

What’s the point. The top 3 immovables will hog all the batting like they have in the last 5-6 years.

[WeStMiDz]

Hardik & Pant should be 4/5. Your two most explosive players must be given that responsibility. 

[nevada]

36 minutes ago, ShoonyaSifar said:

What’s the point. The top 3 immovables will hog all the batting like they have in the last 5-6 years.

Kohli dropped himself to 4 for a game or two to give Rahul a chance but that ended real quick as he failed to capitalize. Maybe Kohli is not really a horrible captain but he just plain sucks in giving confidence to youngsters and even established players. Rohit and Dhoni OTOH seem to provide a calming presence to bring out the best in young players. If Kohli had taken a break for the WI tour as planned, we might have had the likes of Pant bat more freely and improve in confidence. But the insecure li'l boy had to go there to boost his average and not let a rival captain gain any ground. He accomplished his objective bit stunk up the whole joint, filling the dressing room with fear and politicking. Welcome to the Kohli freak show!