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The Indian national cricket team has made a surprising but bold move by appointing Shreyas Iyer as its new T20I captain. This decision has surprised many as Shreyas Iyer has not played a T20 match for India since December 2023, yet he has now suddenly got the captaincy.
Iyer will now be seen in action for the Men in Blue in the upcoming two-match T20 series starting in Ireland from June 26, followed by a white-ball series in England and the Asian Games 2026.
Fearless mentality and strategic talent behind Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy
Indian chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, said that he backed Iyer because of his fearless attitude, confidence, conviction, clarity of thinking and tactical astuteness as well as his strong leadership record across various teams and tournaments, including the IPL and domestic cricket.
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Iyer led Mumbai to the Mushtaq Ali Trophy title in 2024-25, guided Sobo Unicorns to a strong performance in the T20 Mumbai League, led Delhi Capitals to the IPL final and led Punjab Kings to another IPL final. He even won the IPL trophy with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
Shashank Singh reveals Shreyas Iyer’s smart match reading skills
Shreyas Iyer’s biggest strength is his tactical thinking during matches. His Punjab Kings (PBKS) teammate and vice-captain Shashank Singh pointed out how Iyer reads situations quickly and takes quick decisions based on what is happening on the field rather than sticking to plans.
Recalling one of the IPL 2026 matches against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Shashank said that Iyer made a clever bowling change which worked perfectly for PBKS, which shows how he relies on instincts.
ESPNcricinfo quoted Shashank Singh as saying, “Shreyas felt that on that wicket, with my pace, Josh Inglis would find it difficult to get to cow corner or deep midwicket, and instead he would try to hit straight. When you see dismissals, that’s exactly what happened. The shot went straight over my head, and he fitted himself perfectly. That was his trick.”
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When Shreyas Iyer took over as captain
Meanwhile, Shashank Singh shared that he dropped some important catches which affected Punjab Kings’ match in IPL 2026, but Shreyas Iyer never scolded or blamed him.
The PBKS batsman said that Shreyas supported him and made sure he was fine, bearing all the heat as the captain and all these qualities make him an ideal captain for any team.
Shashank further explained, “I dropped many catches; some of them even changed the course of the match. But Shreyas did not blame me even once. He came to my room later that day to ask if everything was okay and [whether] I needed some help.
Not once did he make me feel like a criminal. Because when you are losing and you are also the captain, you have to face the heat as a leader. There are pressures. For the team to be able to absorb all that is something they have done amazingly well.