Pakistan’s sensational pacer broke Shreyas Iyer’s bat from his fast delivery in the ongoing Asia Cup 2023 clash between India and Pakistan at Muttiah Muralitharan International Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
As the match started, India won the toss and opted to bat first. However, the decision didn’t go down well as India lost their captain Rohit Sharma and key batter Virat Kohli in quick successions. Shreyas Iyer came in to bat at number four and looked quite comfortable at the crease against the fiery bowling line-up of Pakistan.
Haris Rauf’s Fast Delivery Broke Shreyas Iyer’s Bat
During the eighth over of the innings, Haris Rauf broke Shreyas Iyer’s bat with his stunning delivery. Despite the bat being broken, Iyer managed to smash that delivery for a boundary. Iyer played a cover drive that yielded him two runs for the shot but in the process, he broke his bat.
Shreyas Iyer's Bat broken by the pace of haris Rauf. pic.twitter.com/mrTDh2Uwli
— Satyyy (@Satyyy0006) September 2, 2023
Haris Rauf's delivery broke Shreyas Iyer's bat. Pace is pace, yaar 🔥🔥#AsiaCup2023 #PakvInd pic.twitter.com/Cim07pR7Xr
— Sher Ali (@SahabShero) September 2, 2023
Shreyas Iyer's bat broken on Haris Rauf's delivery#INDvsPAK #iyer pic.twitter.com/uX7HMKjS9F
— Nitish Patel (@Nitishp2510) September 2, 2023
Soon after the bat-split incident, the fright-handed batter smashed two quick boundaries.
Meanwhile, ahead of the match, after the Indian cricket team finalized their playing XI for the clash against Pakistan, Shreyas Iyer confessed that he never imagined that he would eventually make it to the Asia Cup 2023 squad before admitting that his selection was rather startling.
Iyer also revealed that the nervousness of being part of a high-octane game kept him up throughout the night. He said:
“I never imagined I would be playing the Asia Cup because the way I was recovering as it was going slow and steady and the suddenly I was able to pass the test and was pain free a week before the selection. I was happy and couldn’t digest the fact that I was selected,”
He added: “I was nervous last night, couldn’t sleep. I am super excited to play this match against Pakistan. It’s a phenomenal feeling to be honest as they are the number 1 team at the moment,”
India vs. Pakistan Playing XI:
Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Imam ul Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Agha, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
