In the 1st T20I match against the West Indies at Lucknow on October 6, 2026, Shreyas Iyer scored his first T20I century with an undefeated 102 off 43 balls. With 32 balls remaining, India won by 8 wickets after chasing down the West Indies’ 171 runs in 14.4 overs.
Iyer’s knock included six sixes and ten fours. He added the next 52 runs off of just 15 balls after reaching his half-century off of 28 balls. In T20Is, his century is acknowledged as the joint-third fastest by a captain of a full-member team.
Before Iyer and Ishan Kishan steadied the chase with an uninterrupted third-wicket partnership of 137 runs, India was at 35/2. Through that stand, Kishan was undefeated at 37 off 27 balls.
Shreyas Iyer scored his first T20I century with an undefeated 102 off 43 balls
In an interview with Star Sports following the game, Yuzvendra Chahal commended Iyer’s improved timing and attacking mindset. Chahal emphasised how bowlers have found it challenging to devise a strategy against Shreyas Iyer due to his ability to play across the crease and utilise the entire width of the crease. In order to explain the improvement in his batting, Chahal also cited his personal experience bowling to Shreyas Iyer in the nets. Attacking the mind, of course. He used to go back and play the cut when Shreyas arrived at the beginning.
He now appears, and he also has that choice if the midwicket fielder is up. His reach is so great that he can play over cover and mid-off if you bowl outside the off-stump. Thus, when the bowler is not receiving any assistance from the wicket, he becomes somewhat stuck about what to do,” Chahal stated on Star Sports.He used to easily hit me over cover for a six if I didn’t bowl wider when I bowled to him in the nets. He used to hit hard one or one and a half years ago, but now he times the ball, which is his speciality and the reason his batting has improved so much’, he continued.
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Iyer was reading bowlers’ intentions and predicting their plans throughout the innings, according to Sunil Gavaskar’s observations. Iyer’s action at the crease against Romario Shepherd was cited by Gavaskar as a particular illustration of that awareness. Batting puts the bowler’s mindset to the test, particularly in Twenty20 cricket. You guess, too. You have to guess what the next move in a game of chess will be. As a batter, you therefore imagine where the bowler would bowl.
Romario Shepherd was very much across and going back when he bowled. He was going outside the off-stump because he knew Shepherd would only attempt to bowl outside the off-stump. Batters typically go back and across toward the off-stump. He used the lofted off-drive and lofted extra cover drive because of this. He was able to get into those positions because he could read the bowler’s thoughts. “Excellent batting, amazing batting,” Gavaskar remarked, according to the previously mentioned source.
