After a roller-coaster year when he won the IPL and was dropped from the BCCI central contracts at the same time, Indian middle order batter Shreyas Iyer played a vital role in the team’s triumphant Champions Trophy campaign. Former India selector Dilip Vengsarkar was all praises for the current Punjab Kings’ captain, saying he has realised his potential.
“Iyer did very well but I am not happy the way he got out in the final. He should have continued till the very end and finished the game. But happy to see him realise his potential. KL too played a few important innings at number six but still not convinced Axar Patel batting ahead of him at five. The left-hand right-hand combination could be the only reason,” Vengsarkar said.
Iyer also finished second in the batting charts of the Champions Trophy with 243 runs, just behind New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra.
Vengsarkar also gave due credit to the selection panel led by Ajit Agarkar. “Credit needs to go to the selectors as well. They stuck with Rohit after the Australia series. Even the decision to take five spinners in the squad proved to be a master stroke,” he added.
Last year, Iyer became the eighth captain to win the coveted IPL title as he led KKR to their third championship, beating SunRisers Hyderabad. Despite three seasons with the franchise, Iyer was released by KKR, following which he became the second-most IPL auction signing ever when Punjab snapped him up for Rs 26.75 crore in the auctions.
Punjab will be Iyer’s third franchise in the IPL and a third stint in a leadership role. After having started out in the IPL in 2015 with the Delhi Capitals, Iyer was raised to captaincy in the 2018 season. He also led the Capitals to their first IPL final in the 2020 season.