Ambati Rayudu, in a cheeky dig, said Shreyas Iyer sacrificing his century was ‘unique and brilliant’
It’s not often that a score in the 90s is celebrated more than a century, but last night, Shreyas Iyer changed that narrative. The Punjab Kings captain, making his PBKS debut, remained unbeaten on 97, sacrificing his hundred for the team’s case. Iyer was batting belligerently on 90 at the end of the 17th over. With 18 balls left, Iyer could have easily farmed strike and completed his century, but the 30-year-old prioritised the team over himself instead. With Shashank Singh batting brilliantly at the other end, he let his teammate go hammer and tongs rather than keeping taking strike to himself.
Shreyas Iyer in full flow against Gujarat Titans last night(PTI)
Between overs 17 and 20, Iyer faced just five deliveries – two of which were wides – with Shashank doing most of the hitting. He was unbeaten on 44 off just 16 balls, powering PBKS to a daunting 243/5. And the Punjab wrapped up an 11-run win, Iyer’s selflessness was lauded by the world over, but probably none more resounding than Ambati Rayudu. The former India batter challenged an entire generation of Mumbai cricketers, highlighting the importance of centuries in that region.
“Especially coming from a Bombay batsman, that’s quite a change. While growing up in Bombay, he must have only heard 100, 100, 100, 100 in his head. So I think that’s quite a change, and that’s brilliant to be honest,” Rayudu said while speaking on ESPNCricinfo after PBKS beat Gujarat Titans.
Also Read: Shashank Singh didn’t know Shreyas Iyer was on 97, PBKS captain said, ‘Don’t worry about my century, hit every ball’
Rayudu isn’t entirely wrong. Mumbai is arguably the biggest hub of cricketers in India, and over the last 100 years, has produced a plethora of decorated players. It’s no rocket science that Mumbai have won the Ranji Trophy 42 times – more than any other team. From Sunil Gavaskar to Sachin Tendulkar to Rohit Sharma and now Iyer, Mumbai boasts a rich cricketing legacy in the annals of Indian cricket.
Mumbai the century hub in Indian cricket
Gavaskar, with 34 Test centuries, once held the record for the most hundreds in Tests before Tendulkar’s 100 hundreds became a phenomenon. In fact, long before Virat Kohli, it was Tendulkar who made the entire country obsess over a century. Every time he went out to bat, fans would take nothing less than a three-figure score from the Master Blaster. On to the current generation, Rohit, with 32 centuries, is behind a select few in the list of most ODI hundreds – only Kohli and Tendulkar are ahead.
Iyer, meanwhile, is climbing up the ladder rather quickly. For someone who made his international debut in 2017, the first few years of Iyer’s career blew hot and cold due to injuries and form. But the 2023 World Cup, where Iyer plundered over 500 runs, was the true coming-of-age series for Iyer, making him undroppable.
However, his constant back injuries, coupled with his unavailability to play domestic matches, led to Iyer’s BCCI contract getting terminated – this was after he led KKR to win in IPL 2024. Finally back in the Indian set-up, Iyer hasn’t broken back into the team’s T20I set-up yet, but if last evening’s game is any indication, he can’t wait to hit the ground running.
