Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) splurged a whopping Rs 23.75 crore for Venkatesh Iyer as they engaged in an intense bidding war with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). After not being able to get back Shreyas Iyer's services, there were speculations that Venkatesh may make his Indian Premier League (IPL) captaincy debut in the next edition. The batting all-rounder also made it clear that he wants to lead and will be happy if the opportunity comes his way. However, there have been reports claiming that Ajinkya Rahane was picked for the sole purpose of being a captaincy prospect. Meanwhile, Venkatesh has maintained that he wants to be a leader in the dressing room whether he is named captain of KKR or not.
"I’ve always maintained that I want to be a leader in any set-up that I walk into, be it Madhya Pradesh, an IPL team, or even the Indian team. Being a leader, you want to contribute with your ideas, with your suggestions. You don’t really need the captaincy tag for that. So I always want to be a leader in the dressing room. And if captaincy comes my way, it will be an honour to lead such a reputed franchise. Let’s see what’s in store for me," The Madhya Pradesh all-rounder told Indian Express.
Venkatesh on hefty price tag
Venkatesh was roped in for his base price of Rs 20 lakh in 2021 and impressed everyone during the second leg of the tournament. In the next edition, he got a price tag of Rs 8 crore. Following his performances, he was retained by the franchise for next two seasons. The 29-year-old said that while there is some pressure on him because of the price tag, it won't matter when the IPL starts.
"It is a big jump from where I was yesterday, to where I will be in the future, in terms of bank balance. I’d be lying if I said that there won’t be any pressure of the price tag. We’re all living in a world where social media is very active, where we know people are talking about you, where there are so many analysts talking about you. I’m not someone who will entirely ignore it. But once the IPL starts, it doesn’t matter if you were picked for Rs 20 lakh or Rs 20 crore. You are part of a team, there’ll be a certain role given to you. It’s your duty to try and fulfil that role," the left-handed batter said.
