Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra showered praise on Shreyas Iyer’s performance in the fourth T20I against England. Iyer scored a fine knock of 80 runs off 49 balls, which was his 10th T20I fifty. The Mumbai batter got off to a sedate start but he was able to change his gears as he scored five fours and four maximums in his knock.

None of the other Indian batters could show much resistance and Iyer was the lone warrior. Thus, he played a key role in helping India post a fighting score of 158 runs on the board.

This was Iyer’s second fifty as India’s T20I captain as he batted at the top of his game when India had their backs against the wall. However, England was able to chase down the score with nine wickets and 37 balls to spare.

“Shreyas Iyer needs to be praised because 30 or 35 runs had been scored when he came to bat after the fall of the second wicket. After that, 125 runs were scored in total, and he scored 80 out of that. He was going at a run-a-ball at the start for sure because the entire team’s batting approach has become like that. It’s okay if you play slow at the start as long as you can make up for it,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.

“The way he took down Rashid, who was hit for 49 runs, and Shreyas scored 44 of those. He used the crease very well. Stepped out at times and used the depth of the crease on other occasions. He is actually passing this test with flying colors because he is batting well,” he added.

Chopra noted that things haven’t gone Iyer’s way as a leader, while leading Punjab Kings and India in the last few games.

“If you see his last few games as a captain, that is a bit of a problem. The Punjab Kings had won six of their first seven games, and then they won only one of the next seven, and now it’s been six matches (for India), and you haven’t won even one,” he said.

The fifth T20I between India and England will be played at Rose Bowl, Southampton, on Saturday.