The equation had come down to 13 off the final over. Sunrisers Hyderabad, a marauding Heinrich Klassen to be precise, seemed to have won it. At one time, a chase of 208 looked improbable, but Mitchell Starc conceded 26 runs in the 19th over and it looked done and dusted for Kolkata Knight Riders.
KKR captain Shreyas Iyer sprung a surprise and gave the final over to Harshit Rana instead of Andre Russell, who still had a couple of overs left in his kitty. Eyebrows were raised, but Shreyas backed the young fast bowler to take wickets - his team's only chance to pull off a victory. As it turned out, it was a masterstroke. Rana gave away just eight runs and took two wickets, including Klaasen's scalp. KKR won the first match of the 2024 IPL by four runs. It did wonders to their confidence.
This correspondent had spoken to a team insider after the game who confirmed that it was Shreyas’s decision to give the final over to Rana. The message didn't come from the dug-out. Throughout the tournament, the skipper showed his tactical nous and leadership skills. But when KKR eventually won the title, Gautam Gambhir’s contribution as the team mentor was eulogised, while Shreyas received just an honourable mention.
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As the 2025 IPL mega auction came, KKR didn't even retain their title-winning captain. It's another matter that Punjab Kings picked up the middle-order batsman for a staggering Rs 26.75 crore at the auction, but Shreyas probably had reasons to feel hard done by.
As this year's IPL is about to begin, the 30-year-old spoke about it. “I personally felt I didn't get the recognition I wanted to after winning the IPL,” Shreyas told Times of India. “But at the end of the day, as long as you have self integrity and you keep doing the right things when no one is watching, that is more important and that is what I kept doing.”
Shreyas played a pivotal role in the middle order in the Champions Trophy, scoring 243 runs in five matches. He was brilliantly consistent, a reason why India controlled the middle phase in every game during their title-winning campaign. No wonder that Rohit Sharma lavished praise on Shreyas after the final.
Sometimes Shreyas’s contributions go under the radar and from that perspective, the skipper making a special mention was excellent. “When I talk about recognition, it's about getting that respect,” said Shreyas. “It was about the respect for whatever efforts I put on the field. I think sometimes it gets unnoticed. But extremely satisfied with the efforts I put in because they weren't easy wickets to bat on.”
Last year was not easy for him. He was dropped from the BCCI's central contract lists, ostensibly for not turning up for a Ranji Trophy game. He won the IPL all right, but there was a question mark over whether he would be recalled to the Indian team. The tough phase is over now and the last few months have been very fulfilling for Shreyas.
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