'Venkatesh Iyer was a big catalyst for our turnaround this season': Brendon McCullum

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) did not have a good start in the India leg of the IPL. The team was languishing at the seventh position when the tournament was postponed as Covid-19 hit a few camps. However, the team made a remarkable comeback in the UAE leg to exude their dominance and book their seat for the finals.

One of the players that have stood tall and has vastly contributed to the team’s turnaround is Venkatesh Iyer. He did not play a single game in the first half of the league but when he was given the opportunity to showcase his skills, he made most of it. Iyer scored 370 runs at an average of 41.11 from the ten matches he played in the second half.

The steady starts provided by him helped the side to get in a commanding position. Though KKR lost the finals against CSK, Iyer looked impressive with the willow yet again as he hit a belligerent half-century. KKR’s head coach Brendon McCullum lauded Iyer and said the southpaw has been one of the reasons for the shift in the fortunes of the team.

"He (Iyer) will be challenged to change his methods at times too. He might not necessarily be the most consistent because of his flamboyancy. But I hope he remains the Venkatesh Iyer that we have seen so far. He's got an enormous future in this game and he's a very intelligent man. He was a big catalyst for our turnaround this season," McCullum said at the post-match press conference.

Throughout the season, Iyer impressed the cricketing fraternity with his fearless approach to batting. The coach, who has been a promoter of aggressive batsmanship himself, stated that Iyer shouldn’t change his style of play.

“For him, it was a matter of bringing the game which he owns - the Venkatesh Iyer game plan to the table, which is aggressive intent. He's a big presence, he's a tall man. He plays the game with a bit of a cavalier kind of streak. And that is so important that he holds on to it,” McCullum added.