New Delhi, July 10 (IANS) Former India wicketkeeper-batter Saba Karim believes Shreyas Iyer must now establish his own identity as India’s T20I captain, saying the tactical acumen he displayed in the IPL has yet to be reflected at the international level.

Karim’s remarks came after India slumped to a nine-wicket defeat against England in the fourth T20I in Bristol, handing the hosts an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening game was washed out. The series defeat is India’s second bilateral T20I series loss since winning the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, with one match still to be played.

“I feel the time has come for Shreyas Iyer to assert himself as a captain. The tactical captaincy we have seen from him in the IPL has not yet been visible in international cricket,” Karim told Jio Hotstar.

The former national selector questioned some of Iyer’s on-field decisions, particularly India’s batting order during the Bristol defeat.

“For example, when he was batting in the middle, Shivam Dube came in at number five. I didn’t understand that decision. That is not the Shreyas Iyer we know from the IPL. Logically, if he were captaining in the IPL right now, Tilak Varma would have walked in at number five instead of Shivam Dube,” he said.

Karim also stressed that communication from the captain during crucial phases of an innings is equally important.

“When you are batting in the middle as a captain, the messages you send to your partner are very important. Maybe it will take time for him to grow into the role,” he added.

Despite questioning Iyer’s tactical approach, Karim felt the skipper’s batting offered a major positive and would eventually help him become a better leader. Iyer played a brilliant knock of 80 runs off 49 balls against England in the 4th T20i, but he lacked support as India posted only 158 runs in 20 overs, which was chased down easily by England in 13.5 overs.

“But the biggest positive is that he scored runs with the bat. That gives a captain a lot of confidence. When your own performance is good, the captaincy automatically improves. I hope we will see that in the coming matches. I want him to create his own identity. He is ready for it. Now is the time to do it,” Karim said.

Karim also criticised India’s batting approach against England’s pace attack, saying the visitors failed to adapt to English conditions.

“You need to read the opposition’s bowling plans. If you don’t, the results won’t go your way. India didn’t assess the conditions properly and kept playing as though they were batting on Indian pitches with small boundaries. That is not how a World Cup-winning team plays,” he said.

Iyer’s captaincy will again be in focus when India take on England in the last match of the series on Saturday.

–IANS

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