IPL 2026 – Shreyas Iyer and the art of scoring runs under pressure

 

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Time always seems to fly. As yours truly pens down those words,  we are already into the fifth month of 2026. Once again it feels as if the clock chugs along akin to a non-stop train. But even if the 1990s decade has turned into 2000s, 2010s and 2020s, certain things seem to remain the same. One of them has to be Shreyas Iyer’s deep reservoirs of mental strength. And that was on full display when Punjab Kings took on Lucknow Super Giants in a must-win IPL game in Lucknow.

At 22 for 2, in a chase of 197, PBKS desperately needed a partnership of substance. Shreyas and Prabhsimran Singh didn’t just prop up the innings but also shared a game-breaking alliance as PBKS registered a win of significance. It was a significant victory as PBKS had lost six in a row after a bright start. And if PBKS had lost the aforesaid game, they would have bowed out of the tournament.

Moreover, it was an important innings from Iyer’s point of view too. He had been dismissed in a similar fashion over a couple of games, and doubts were raised over his method against the new ball. On the given day, he essayed four boundaries over two overs while facing Mohsin Khan and Mohammed Shami in the Powerplay overs to showcase that he is in good nick.

Perhaps he also made a small tweak to his batting manual. In some of his previous matches, Shreyas’ back foot was positioned outside the leg-stump or leg lined.  In the LSG-PBKS encounter, it was more around the middle-stump, helping his front foot move towards the pitch of the ball and negate any kind of movement upfront.

Shreyas also targeted the right kind of bowlers as he took a toll off an out-of-form Digvesh Rathi. By the time Prabhsimran was dislodged, PBKS were in cruise mode.

The PBKS’ captain’s maiden IPL hundred also transported  this correspondent back to an era when Shreyas was just another of those budding cricketers. Even then he had the resilience to soak up the pressure. In only his third Ranji Trophy game for Mumbai, he was up against a fine Uttar Pradesh attack comprising Praveen Kumar, Amit Mishra (seam bowler), Ankit Rajpoot and Piyush Chawla.

At a particular juncture of the innings, Mumbai were in dire straits at 57 for 6. Shreyas, batting at No. 7, however, accrued a splendid 75 and Mumbai won the match by eight wickets. During that season, Mumbai were also grappling with the No. 3 slot. Shreyas took up the gauntlet of batting at that position and composed a 153 versus Bengal.

With Shreyas, it is never about how he scores his runs. It is about when he scores those runs. It was a hallmark of his batting during his debut Ranji season. And in present times that trait of his helped PBKS to survive in the competition for at least one more day.

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