Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Shreyas Iyer had an impressive start to Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign as the runner-ups of the previous season beat the defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) comfortably. While CSK posted a below par total of 131/5 after losing the toss, it was former CSK skipper MS Dhoni who got crucial boundaries in the death overs that helped them get there.
Dhoni accelerated in the 18th over and then went on to get to his first IPL half-century after 28 games. While KKR bowlers dominated for a better part of the innings, Iyer said in the post-match presentation ceremony that he expected CSK to score big in death overs.
“There is always tension when MS Dhoni is batting. I knew momentum was going to shift towards them with the dew around. It was difficult to grip the ball,” Iyer said.
The young skipper also said that he did not expect the surface at Wankhede stadium, Mumbai to be a bowler-friendly one. He also lauded Umesh Yadav for removing CSK openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway early in the powerplay overs.
“It was spungier than we imagined. This is one place I love to play. I grew up here. I thought it would be flat. It was pretty easy for me with the bowling line up I had. Umesh has worked hard in the nets and did well in the practice games too,” the 27-year-old added.
Shreyas was impressive in the bat too in the run chase. He contributed with an unbeaten 20 off 19 deliveries to see his team through after few wickets in middle overs. He finished the run chase with a boundary off Kiwi speedster Adam Milne in the penultimate over.
The Mumbai-born batter has been in tremendous form in the shortest format of the game. He scored three consecutive half-centuries against Sri Lanka in the T20I series at home. He batted at no.3 in Virat Kohli’s absence. However, in the IPL 2022 opener, he batted at no.4 as Nitish Rana batted at no.3.
