After Rahul Tripathi hit a six to put the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 final, opener Venkatesh Iyer revealed that he couldn’t contain his emotions.
IPL 2021: KKR were cruising at 123 for 1 in Qualifier 2 against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Wednesday, chasing 136. However, they were reduced to 130 for 7 after a startling batting collapse. Tripathi lofted Ravichandran Ashwin for a maximum to take KKR over the victory line with six needed from two balls.
The strike sparked wild celebrations in the KKR camp, with Iyer among those who raced in to hug Tripathi.
“Fifty celebrations, I don’t celebrate a lot. My ways are different and there was a task in hand to score more runs and get the team through. So it is just a thumbs up and gets back to work again. But I really celebrated when Tripathi hit that six because we desperately needed that big hit. I couldn’t control my emotions and run through in with my chappals and just hugged him.” he said
Shubman Gill
Before KKR’s collapse, Iyer (55) and Shubman Gill (46) put the squad on the right track with a 96-run opening stand. While at-bat, he reflected on his thought process.
“I was not chasing 136, I just went out there and wanted to bat. I wanted to play six overs and then see what the situation was. That thought brought the best and hopefully, I keep going.” Iyer revealed
Therefore, in the second half of IPL 2021, the 26-year-old has been a revelation. He has 320 runs at a strike rate of 125 in nine matches, including three half-centuries.
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