Iyer & Iyer: Is Shreyas Iyer the captain overshadowed by Gautam Gambhir and how Venkatesh has adapted to middle order

On the eve of the IPL final, Shreyas Iyer was asked whether he is a less celebrated captain. Dating back to his stint with Delhi Capitals, this is the second time in the last four years where Shreyas is captaining his side in an IPL final. After missing the entire last season with Kolkata Knight Riders due to an injury, he is a key figure in their turnaround this season. But ironically it is Kolkata’s mentor Gautam Gambhir, who believes in sharing the credits, who is being celebrated for the remarkable season they are looking to cap off with a title win on Sunday.

Shreyas didn’t waste much time to respond to the question of leadership. “See, the hype is definitely created by you guys (media). I mean, where I stand is definitely upon you,” Shreyas said.

“But talking about Gautam, I feel that he has got immense knowledge about how the game is played. He has won two titles previously with KKR and his strategies have been spot-on in terms of what execution we have to make against the opponents. So, yeah, he adds on a lot of cream to the team,” he added. Shreyas didn’t speak about his own captaincy style, but few would disagree he has led from the front when it comes to buying into Gambhir’s ideas and translating to success in the middle.

F-𝙄𝙔𝙀𝙍 x 2 🔥🔥

The Iyer(s) are elated post a complete performance in #Qualifier1 but they're not satisfied yet 😎

Captain @ShreyasIyer15 & @venkateshiyer revisit their match-winning partnership 👌👌 – By @28anand & @ameyatilak

WATCH🎥🔽 #TATAIPL | #KKRvSRH | #TheFinalCall

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 22, 2024

Not long back, Shreyas has also had to endure questions over his commitment to playing domestic cricket and longer format. “I was definitely struggling after the (ODI) World Cup, in the longer format. When I raised my concerns (on his back issues), no one were agreeing to it. But at the same time, the competition is with myself. When I came, the IPL was approaching. All I wanted was to put my best foot forward. Whatever planning and strategising we did before it, if we could execute it to the best of our abilities, we would have been in the great spot. And that’s where we are right now.”

In a season where all the focus has been on their openers Sunil Narine and Phil Salt and their finishers Andre Russell, Mandeep Singh and Rinku, the two Iyers – Shreyas and Venkatesh – have flown under the radar.

They are the lifeline to the batting unit, bridging the top and the lower-order. And they do so by ensuring the high notes hit by their openers doesn’t come down. They play the ideal interlude in the middle order. Teams in the past have let their No 4s and 5s to tread cautiously in the middle overs so that their finishers don’t come in early. But Kolkata have binned that approach with Shreyas and Venkatesh ensuring the pedal is not taken off in the middle-overs. It means, both the batsmen have had to bat a lot quicker than they usually do. Shreyas T20 strike-rate stands at 131.25 and Venkatesh’s 138.31. But this IPL, they have scored at 146.18 and 153.62 respectively to ensure that the finishers don’t have the added pressure to up the scoring rate.

What a memorable 𝗞𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 for the men in purple 💜

Unbeaten half-centuries from Venkatesh Iyer 🤝 Shreyas Iyer

The celebrations continue for the final-bound @KKRiders 😎

Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/U9jiBAlyXF#TATAIPL | #KKRvSRH | #Qualifier1 | #TheFinalCall pic.twitter.com/xBFp3Sskqq

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 21, 2024

The two have just five fifties between them this season, but have played the cameos that have ensured the starts given by Narine and Salt don’t go waste. Mostly batting in the middle overs Shreyas has hit 33 boundaries and 14 sixes. And Venkatesh 31 fours and 16 sixes.

That they also happen to be a left-right duo has made for a good pairing. That the two also happen to be effective players against spinners has ensured no real holes in their batting front. They are Tamils, who seldom converse in the language, but in the middle, they speak the same language of intent.

If Venkatesh had to slightly adjust to a different role, to bat in the middle-order, especially after showing what is capable of as an opener in 2021, Shreyas has to do so as a captain. Despite being fully aware of what optics could do especially when big individual scores are lacking, Shreyas hasn’t let it cloud his mind. Instead, he has taken it on himself to show the intent so that the likes of Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Ramandeep get some breathing space.

For the younger lot to embrace their brand of cricket, it was important for Shreyas to do so, just like what Rohit Sharma did in last year’s ODI World Cup. On Sunday, Shreyas will get a chance to end a roller coaster season on a high. From the highs of the World Cup, he ended-up missing out on national contract. He won the Ranji Trophy and now gets a chance to win an IPL title as captain.

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