Shamik Chakrabarty in Chennai
The national selectors dropped him from the Indian team during the home Test series against England. Shreyas Iyer stayed silent. The BCCI omitted him from the list of centrally contracted players under the pretext that he didn’t turn up for a domestic game. Iyer kept his own counsel. Finally, a day before the IPL final, the Kolkata Knight Riders captain spoke about his back issue, dropping a hint that he was misunderstood.
Iyer was under pressure and this IPL allowed him an opportunity to breathe easy; to come into a different atmosphere and set his focus anew. The 29-year-old was flirting with uncertainty before the IPL. A couple of months down the line, he is just one win away from lifting the trophy.
As KKR geared up for the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Chennai on Sunday, Iyer revisited the tough period. “I was struggling after the World Cup in the longer format. When I raised my concerns, no one agreed to it,” he said at the pre-match press conference.
RevSportz reported how Iyer was struggling to cope with back spasms, a reason why he couldn’t play the Ranji Trophy quarter-final against Baroda. He was training at KKR’s Mumbai academy instead, trying to build his load. He was developing back spasms after facing just 60 deliveries and yet, he played the Ranji Trophy semi-final and the final. “The competition was with myself,” he said.
Iyer needed to turn things around in the IPL and he has done that, earning accolades for his leadership skills. Team mentor Gautam Gambhir has given him a complete freehand to take decisions on the field and the KKR skipper has seldom erred. He has also contributed decently with the bat, scoring 345 runs in 13 innings at a strike-rate of 146.18.
“All I wanted to see to it that I put in my best effort forward and whatever planning and strategising we did before it (IPL), if we execute that to the best of our ability, we would be in a great spot. And that is where we are right now,” said Iyer.
KKR have moved like a freight train this season and they are expected to win the title unless Sunrisers pull off a major upset. Iyer, though, chose to play down the captaincy factor, giving credit to Gambhir instead. “The hype was created by you guys. Gautam bhai has immense knowledge about the game. His strategy has been spot on. Hopefully, we will continue our momentum in the final with his knowledge.”
The rain bucketed down on Saturday evening. The pitch at Chepauk was under wraps and practice had to be called off. The Qualifier 2 between Sunrisers and Rajasthan Royals was played on Pitch No. 7, which became a tad sluggish as the game progressed and offered turn in the second half. A different surface will be used for the final. “Looking at the wicket today, it’s completely different from Qualifier 2. It’s a red soil wicket. We don’t know how it’s going to play tomorrow. The dew factor didn’t play a role yesterday. Whatever decision we take, hopefully (it) will go in our favour,” said Iyer.
KKR’s all-round cricket has taken conditions out of the equation. If the pitch offers carry and bounce for the seamers, they have Mitchell Starc upfront. If it turns, KKR can turn to Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy. Throughout the tournament, the two spinners have been excellent in the middle overs. Their captain urged them to continue with the good work in the final.
“They are our wicket-takers. They have been spot on in executing our plans. When they bowl in the middle overs, they pick wickets and keep it tight. Hopefully they will do it tomorrow,” Iyer hoped.
Success is sweeter after one goes through struggles. The winter was not good for Iyer. Peak summer is proving to be refreshingly different.