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1st No 4 Batter With 500 Runs In WC, Iyer's Spot Should Be Fixed In Champions Trophy - Period

Bhargav Dixit

Shreyas Iyer hasn't batted at No. 4 since ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. [Source: @StarcKKR/X]Shreyas Iyer hasn't batted at No. 4 since ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. [Source: @StarcKKR/X]

It wouldn’t be wrong to say that India’s 15-member squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is a safe bet. No fancy selections leaving anyone shell-shocked. No desperation for an X-factor player. No succumbing to social media narratives in order to play for the gallery.

If India remain as disciplined as they were during squad selection while announcing Playing XIs before their matches starting next month, there is no reason why they can’t lift the coveted silverware after 12 years assuming players play according to their potential.

How Inessential Experimenting Cost India In Sri Lanka

A chief reason to worry about India’s tendency to experiment needlessly with regard to their Playing XI is their previous ODI assignment, i.e., a three-match ODI series in Sri Lanka last year.

Yet to win an ODI since ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, India failed to chase down targets below the 250-run mark thrice in as many matches at the spin-friendly R Premdasa Stadium. Even though the conditions were tailormade for spinners, one expects Indian batters, historically presumed to be masters of spin, to come out victorious.



While they did not rise up to the occasion, continuous changes to the batting order didn’t help either. The fact that no one between Nos. 4-8 batted at one particular position throughout the series sums up the inessential chaos created by the team management.

Shreyas Iyer Is Unmatched At No. 4

Now, India’s No. 4 problem in ODIs is well-documented. As many as 22 batters have been given the role in the last 10 years. Shreyas Iyer, first-ever No. 4 batter to amass in excess of 500 runs during a World Cup, wasn’t given the position the next time he batted in the format. In fact, he is yet to bat at No. 4 in an ODI since then.



Two years after his ODI debut, it was around five years ago when Iyer first batted two-down in the format. Fifth-highest run-scorer in this role since then, Iyer is the only batter to average more than 50 and strike at more than 100 in this period (min. 500 runs).

Iyer, who has scored 1,397 runs at an average and strike rate of 51.74 and 101.74 respectively across 33 innings, has more than double the runs scored by the next best Indian in Ajinkya Rahane (628) in the last decade. While no other Indian batter has registered more than five 50+ scores at No. 4 in this period, Iyer has four centuries and eight half-centuries under his belt.

India Should Not Give In To Push A Left-Hander At No. 4

With a top-order comprising Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli arguably the best in world cricket at the moment, they should resist pushing a left-handed batter at No. 4 in the name of ensuring variety. Had a left-hander cemented his position by now, demoting Iyer would’ve been understandable.

That being said, tinkering with Iyer’s batting position in spite of the above-mentioned mind-blowing numbers is crackbrained, to say the least. With Iyer, India’s stellar Top 3 has it in it to become a stellar Top 4.

When the leadership has a chance of doing the same, one really fails to understand why they’re behind a left-hander. For the same reason, lefties namely Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube and Rishabh Pant had batted at No. 4 in Sri Lanka. It is noteworthy that neither of these three has ever managed to make the No. 4 spot his own.

Axar Patel’s Statement Remains Limited To T20Is, Hopefully

All-rounder Axar Patel, promoted as India’s vice-captain for the imminent five-match T20I series against England, recently underlined how they’re looking to treat batters as “floaters”. As per Patel, other than opening batters, everyone should be prepared to bat at any position depending on match situation.

While taking refuge in such a ploy can end up proving treacherous, here’s seriously hoping that India don’t employ such a tactic in ODIs. With their game plan of elevating all-rounders over specialists backfiring during Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25, India should strongly resist looking to bat the likes of Sundar or Patel at No. 4 especially in place of someone as settled as Iyer and in presence of Hardik Pandya and Patel/Ravindra Jadeja.