Brendon McCullum, the coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), said that opener Venkatesh Iyer was set to play the franchise’s eighth match. In India during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. The competition was postponed owing to the COVID-19 epidemic. Before the match could take place, but fate had other intentions.
Iyer eventually made his debut in the UAE leg and cracked a refreshing 41 not out off 27 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Abu Dhabi. The 26-year-old went from strength to strength, finishing IPL 2021 with 370 runs in ten games at a strike rate of 128.47.
On Friday, the left-hander smashed a half-century against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final. However, it wasn’t enough to prevent KKR from losing by 27 runs. When asked why Iyer was chosen to play this season, he expressed his gratitude.
“Venkatesh Iyer has been quite an incredible story. Looking back, he was actually going to play the next game when we were in India. In a funny way, the break came there at a good time too. It gave him an opportunity to just get another couple of months of cricket under his belt, to understand that his opportunities weren’t too far away.” McCullum said
The KKR coach praised Iyer as a special talent, admitting that the left-aggressive hander’s intent at the top was crucial in the franchise’s remarkable turnaround in the UAE.
“For him, it was a matter of bringing the game he owns – the Venkatesh Iyer game plan – to the table, which is an aggressive intent. He’s a big presence; he’s a tall man. He plays the game with a cavalier kind of streak. It’s so important he holds on to that.” he said
Venkatesh Iyer
“He will be challenged to change his methods at times too. He might not necessarily be the most consistent because of his flamboyancy. I hope he remains the Venkatesh Iyer that we have seen so far. He’s got an enormous future in this game, and he’s a very intelligent man. He was a big catalyst for our turnaround this season.” he added
In the final, Iyer and Shubman Gill (51) combined for 91 runs for the first wicket against CSK. However, after Iyer’s death, KKR collapsed to 165 for 9 in a 193-run chase.
Visit also: Brendon McCullum says “Venkatesh Iyer was going to play the next game in India” in IPL 2021