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The much-awaited clash turned out to be a one-sided affair in the end. Virat Kohli's century ensured India beat Pakistan by six wickets with 45 balls to spare. In the run chase, Shreyas Iyer played the supporting role scoring 56 runs from 67 balls. After the win in Dubai, Iyer was asked whether the victory would've tasted better if the match was played in Karachi's National Stadium or Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium. Iyer had a straightforward answer to the journalist in the press conference as he termed the victory 'sweet'.
"I haven't played that many matches in Pakistan, so I don't know exactly how it would have felt. But it's a neutral venue and it's a challenge for both the teams. But any victory against Pakistan is sweet because they are always competitive," Iyer told the reporters on February 23.
"It's a challenge and there's a lot of pressure externally as well. It was a lot of fun. It was my third game against Pakistan," he added.
Iyer on his approach in run chase
Iyer arrived at the crease in the 18th over after Abrar Ahmed dismissed opener Shubman Gill with an excellent delivery. He did not attack straightaway but took his time. Pakistan brought back Haris Rauf to trouble Iyer with pace and bounce. Till the 29th over, he was batting at a strike rate around 50.
"See, it is clear as sweeps and reverse sweeps cannot be played straightaway. But rotating the strike is going to be important because that puts a decent amount of pressure on the bowlers.
"They keep changing their line lengths. And once you keep taking singles, the bowlers are more under pressure and you can keep hitting the scoreboard from there on," he explained.
The 30-year-old shifted gears and was even dropped by Saud Shakeel off Khushdil Shah's bowling. He hit Agha Salman for a six and ruled out Pakistan's comeback with his aggressive strokeplay. He reached his 21st ODI half-century from 62 balls.
"I love to take on the bowlers when we are under pressure. And that is my mindset. If we take charge, if we gain the momentum towards us, then it is easy to steady the ship.
"And from there on, the rest of the batsmen, when they come in, it becomes easy for them," said the middle-order batter.
Eventually, he had to return to the pavillion when Imam-ul-Haq took a super diving catch at extra cover.
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