Shreyas Iyer has got the potential to lead India one day: Alex Carey

The IPL franchise Delhi Capitals (then Daredevils) had made a bold move of handing the captaincy to a young Shreyas Iyer in the 2018 edition after Gautam Gambhir stepped down from the leadership role mid-way in the season. This has proved to be a masterstroke for the team as their fortunes have turned for good. 

In his first match as a captain in 2018, Iyer had hammered an unbeaten 40-ball 93. Though Delhi had finished last on the points table, Shreyas made a name for himself by scoring 411 runs at an average of 37. The youngster along with head coach Ricky Ponting then took the team to their first play-offs after seven years in 2019 followed by their maiden IPL final in 2020. 

In both the seasons of the T20 Championship, the young captain led the team from the front as he aggregated 463 and 519 runs in 2019 and 2020 respectively. In 2019, Iyer also cemented his place in the Indian team by playing some decent knocks while batting at the number 4 position.

Shreyas Iyer still young and learning his crafts, reckons Carey

Ahead of the India tour of Australia, where Shreyas has been named in the T20I and ODI squad, the Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey feels that Iyer is a hot contender for leading the national team in the near future. 

“No doubt he’s got the potential to lead India one day. I think Shreyas is going to be a fantastic leader moving forward,” said Carey answering a Hindustan Times question in a selected media interaction on Tuesday.

Carey, who played under Iyer in IPL 2020 for Delhi Capitals, further stated that Shreyas’ biggest positive as a leader is that he connects with every single player in the squad and worries more about the group than his own performance. 

“His ability to connect with all the players in the group was fantastic. He took the focus off himself and worried more about the group. He’s been really successful for the last couple of seasons for Delhi,” Carey said. 

“He’s still young and learning his crafts. He’s a fantastic batsman and a great person as well. To connect with every player in a big squad like Delhi is quite a tiring task but he was excellent in managing that. His positive attitude towards the game and his partnership with Ricky really worked well for us. The future is very bright for him,” he added.