India batting legend Sunil Gavaskar believes Shreyas Iyer should receive more recognition for leading the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the Indian Premier League (IPL) championship. Shreyas led KKR to their third IPL championship, but KKR released him before the IPL 2025 mega auction, where the Punjab Kings (PBKS) acquired him.
Gautam Gambhir was generally credited for KKR's triumph, but Gavaskar believes the captain, not the person in the dugout, should take most of the credit. In addition to serving as captain, Shreyas amassed 351 runs at an average of 39 in 14 innings, including two fifties.
"He didn't get the credit for the IPL victory last season. All the plaudits were given to someone else. It's the captain, who plays a major role in what's happening in the middle and not someone sitting in the dugout," Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
PBKS is through to the playoffs this year under Shreyas. The team lost to KKR in the championship game in 2014, the year they last placed in the top four. Gavaskar is happy that Shreyas, rather than PBKS head coach Ricky Ponting, is receiving all the accolades this season.
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"See, this year he's getting fair credit. No one is giving all the credit to Ricky Ponting," he added.
In last year's mega auction, Shreyas was purchased by PBKS for an astounding Rs 26.75 crore. The decision by PBKS to spend a lot of money on Iyer has so far paid off; in 11 games, the right-handed batsman has scored 405 runs at an average of 50.63, including four fifties.
As captain, Iyer has been shrewd and proactive in his leadership, and with head coach Ricky Ponting in the dugout, PBKS is currently in third place with 15 points. For the first time since the 2014 IPL, the team has made it to the playoffs.
Iyer and coach Ponting had previously worked together at the Delhi Capitals, where they made it into the playoffs in 2019 and finished second in 2020. The Iyer-Ponting duo, again back together at the PBKS setup, has brilliantly turned around the team's fortunes, putting them through to the playoffs for the first time in over ten years.
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