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When A 16-Year-Old Shreyas Iyer Was Taken To A Psychologist By His Father

image-lqj80duoShreyas Iyer in action at the 2023 World Cup (AP)

Shreyas Iyer, upon making his international debut in late 2017, soon became one of the stalwarts of India’s limited-overs batting line-up. While Iyer has been a consistent commodity for Team India in the middle-order, the cricketer seemed to have reserved his best for the 2023 World Cup, where he returned with over 500 runs at a splendid average of 66.25 while holding an astonishing strike-rate of 113.24.

The prodigal batting talent, however, did underwent a major slump in form when he was just 16 years old, i.e., back in 2010-11 when he was still playing junior level cricket in Mumbai.

Fortunately for Iyer, his father Santosh Iyer rectified his son’s ordeal by taking him to a sports psychologist in a bid to help him regain his focus.

When Shreyas Iyer’s father recalled son’s ordeal

At the age of 16, Shreyas Iyer underwent a major slump in form back at the time when he was still playing junior level cricket in Mumbai. Upon learning about his ordeal with one of the coaches, his father Santosh Iyer decided to take him to counseling.

While speaking on a Cricbuzz show, Santosh said:

“When one coach told me that your son has talent, but he has lost focus along the way, I got a little worried. I thought he has either fallen in love or got mixed up in the wrong crowd.”

Unlike most parents who would scold their children, Santosh Iyer took his son to a sports psychologist instead as he wanted the youngster to gain mental recovery. Fortunately for both, Iyer junior was simply going through a rough patch and he soon regained his lost touch to score big. Santosh Iyer added:

“Eventually, I was told that there was nothing to worry about. Like most other cricketers, Shreyas was simply going through a rough patch. And sure enough, he soon recovered his form and never looked back again.”

Shreyas Iyer has so far turned up for Team India in 59 ODI matches, where he scored 2,383 runs at an average close to 50. Apart from his five ODI tons, the cricketer also has a Test century to his name