‘He’ll do just fine’

Shreyas Iyerrsquos Mumbai teammates welcomed the middle order batsmanrsquos inclusion in the India Test team and were confident that he would make his debut in the forthcoming twoTest series against New ZealandMumbai the hub of Test cricketers has produced the maximum number of international players If given a chance Iyer will be 72nd cricketer from the city to play for the country in the longer format the last being Shardul Thakur who made his Test debut against West Indies at Hyderabad in 2018Debut likely at KanpurConsidering Iyerrsquos technique and temperament he has bright chances of playing his maiden Test in Kanpur on November 25 under the captaincy of fellow Mumbaikar Ajinkya RahanePravin Amre Dhawal Kulkarni and Aditya TareRahane will lead the team since Virat Kohli has been rested along with Rohit Sharma wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami Kohli is expected to return for the December 37 Mumbai Test Rahane led India to the 202021 BorderGavaskar Trophy series win in Australia when Kohli was on paternity leaveMumbai wicketkeeperbatsman Aditya Tare believed that Iyer will get his chance to adorn the Test cap ldquoI am so happy to see Shreyas in the India Test squad He is suited to all three formats and deserves this opportunity He has become a much better redball player now as he has international experience under his beltrdquo Tare told midday on FridayIyer 26 has scored 813 in 22 ODIs while 550 runs have come off his blade in 29 T20Is The righthander has 4592 runs to his name from 54 firstclass games ldquoShreyas was outstanding whenever he has batted at No 3 for Mumbai He scored more than 1000 runs 1321 and also a century in the final 117 v Saurashtra in Pune when we won the Ranji Trophy in 201516ldquoNow he is ready and excited to play Test cricket I hope he will get a chance in the playing XI and will represent the Test team for the next five years He has the perfect temperament and will be a good investment for Indian cricketrdquo said Tare who led Mumbai to their 41st Ranji Trophy title in 201516 Former India Test batsman Pravin Amre 53 who groomed Iyer at the Shivaji Park Gymkhana SPG academy during his early days wants his ward to score a century on Test debut just like he did against South Africa at Durban in 199293 ldquoAs a coach I want Shreyas to get that experience of scoring a hundred I am confident he will capitalise on the Test opportunity too He is an aggressive cricketer who plays equally well against spinners and pace bowlers He enjoys tackling challenges and has been confident right from his early days The most important thing is that he has the ability to play under pressure Test cricket is nothing but pressure and Shreyas is ready to absorb itrdquo said Amre lsquoPassionate cricketerrsquoMumbai pacer Dhawal Kulkarni who handed the Mumbai cap to Iyer before his debut Ranji Trophy match against Jammu amp Kashmir at Wankhede Stadium in December 2014 felt Iyer is thoroughly deserving of a Test callup ldquoHe scored a lot of runs for Mumbai He has worked very hard and is a very passionate cricketer I am delighted that my Mumbai teammate is in the Test team and will hopefully make his debut against New Zealandrdquo said KulkarniIndiarsquos Test squadAjinkya Rahane C KL Rahul Mayank Agarwal Cheteshwar Pujara vc Shubman Gill Shreyas Iyer Wriddhiman Saha wk KS Bharat wkeeper Ravindra Jadeja R Ashwin Axar Patel Jayant Yadav Ishant Sharma Umesh Yadav Mohammed Siraj Prasidh Krishna