MUMBAI: In a big setback to his comeback aspirations, Shreyas Iyer is likely to be ruled out of Mumbai’s next Ranji Trophy match, against Tripura at Agartala from October 26 due to a shoulder injury. A reliable source in the Mumbai Cricket Association confirmed that Iyer has not travelled with the Mumbai team to Agartala on Wednesday morning.
Talking to reporters recently after he scored a century against Maharashtra in the last Ranji match at the MCA ground in BKC, Iyer had said that he had played seven consecutive domestic matches, and mentioned that he needed to rest his body, regardless of what others might think.”No matter whatever people think outside, I have to listen to my body because I know the amount of threshold I’ve carried over the last few years and based on that I’ll be taking the right decision and I hope that my team will also back (me),” he had said.
The MCA had announced a 16-member squad on Monday, leaving out opener Prithvi Shaw on “fitness grounds.”
This injury is the latest blow to Iyer’s career. The Mumbaikar had spent a considerable time out of the game due to a back injury for which he had to ultimately undergo a back surgery in London. He played in both the Asia Cup and the World Cup, but lost his spot in the Indian team in both the Test and T20 formats.
After scoring a ton against Maharashtra-his first in first-class cricket since 2021-Iyer hoped for a national comeback. “Absolutely! That’s why I’ve been playing. I mean, or else I would have given a reason and sat out,” Iyer responded, when quizzed about whether there was still a drive in him to wear the white jersey. “I am absolutely keen for a comeback but yes, as we say, control the controllables, and my job is to keep performing and keep participating (in matches) as much as possible and also see that my body is in the best shape. So, I’ll take the best decision possible according to that,” stressed the 29-year-old.
Iyer had admitted that he had been fearful that his serious back injury might flare up again. “Not anymore. I think the surgery was last year and after that I played (in the) (ODI) World Cup, Asia Cup and many more matches. But there was this phase where I was feeling that it might occur again. But yes, I trained a lot to see to it that I have optimum fitness and obviously, it comes here and there, but now my capacity has improved a lot,” he assured.
2024 was a year which saw Iyer become a victim of a perception around him that he shirks the longer format. Having played seven first-class matches on the trot, Iyer is happy to have addressed that issue for good. “I’m in a good space right now. I’m doing what I’m meant to do, that is training and playing matches consistently and I feel that all the matches I’ve played right now have helped me gain that fitness level as well, along with my training program. So, this is my seventh match on the trot, and the body has taken a lot of load at the same time. So, we have to manage here and there and see to it that I strategize in terms of how I play,” he elaborated.
Having suffered from serious injuries to his shoulder and back that required surgeries and hurt his career majorly as he took time to rehabilitate from them, Iyer said that he has now become “smart” in terms of managing his body as a cricketer. “See, now I have to be smart in terms of what decisions I make. I need to see to it that my body is in the best shape possible. I have to decide according to that, no matter what people think. I have to listen to my body because I know the amount of threshold I have carried over the last few years and based on that, I’ll be taking the right decision and I hope that my team will also back (me),” Iyer explained.
