Former Indian Opener Gautam Gambhir said the 27-year-old young allrounder’s fate in the ODI squad is undecided as he feels that Venkatesh Iyer should not be considered for the ODI format and can be used as a utility player in the T20 team.
Venkatesh’s spot in the ODI team was confirmed after Hardik Pandya was out with an injury in the T20 Worldcup which was held last year in October 2021 in the UAE, Iyer was initially picked for the home series against New Zealand and then called up for South Africa ODI tour as Hardik Pandya wanted to focus on his fitness and come back after fully recovering from the injury.
In the ODI series, Iyer scored 2 for 7 in the first match following up with 24 runs in 40 deliveries in the second one, and also given a chance to bowl which he was not given in the first match finishing his spell 0/28 in the five overs which he bowled. He was dropped for the final match which was very baffling and raised many questions regarding his role in India’s plan for the 2023 World Cup.
Gambhir spoke to Star Sports after the South Africa series ended and said, Venkatesh lacks the maturity needed for ODI cricket and should be considered only for the T20 team if he is given a chance to open in the shorter format of the game. He added by saying taking him in the ODI series just after 7 to 8 innings in IPL is not fair because ODI is a different game altogether.
