Shreyas Iyer’s rescue act of 79 during the final Champions Trophy group fixture between India and New Zealand saw him overtake several greats.
After being asked to bat first, India were reduced to 30-3 in 6.4 overs after Glenn Phillips pulled off yet another blinder to leave Virat Kohli stunned. Coming in at four, Iyer steadied the ship with a 98-run stand with Axar Patel, who was promoted up the order for the umpteenth time of late.
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Iyer took 31 balls to hit his first boundary before smashing another three to reach his fifty, off 75 deliveries. It was his slowest in ODIs, with the previous slowest being the 74-ball half-century against West Indies in 2022.
Iyer tried to up the ante hitting two sixes before being dismissed for a 98-ball 79 by Will O’Rourke off a short ball. As a result, India lost half their side for 172 in 36.2 overs.
How many 50s does Iyer have at No.4?
That was Iyer's sixth 50-plus score against New Zealand and 16th overall in the format at No.4.
In the process, he went past Virat Kohli, who has 15 scores over fifty to his tally in that position. Iyer is now on par with players like Joe Root and Brian Lara, among those who have scored 16 scores above fifty at No. 4.
Former New Zealand captain Ross Taylor holds the all-time world record with 65 fifty-plus scores at No.4 in men's ODIs.
For India, the record belongs to Mohammad Azharuddin, who has 36 50-plus scores at No.4, followed by Rahul Dravid, who has 28.
Most men's ODI 50-plus scores at No.4
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