It was in the middle of Indian Premier League (IPL) last season that Gautam Gambhir stepped down from the captaincy and young Shreyas Iyer had to take up the role. Although Delhi had a forgettable campaign, Iyer did a commendable job in the last few games.
As he approaches his first season as a full-time captain of the Delhi Capitals, Iyer is confident of leading the side to success and also remains optimistic about his World Cup chances.
“In IPL if I get a great start then it could really impact the selections. Selectors will be thinking twice about me. That’s what I am really looking forward to. But I have been doing well in all formats, not just IPL. So definitely this IPL they will be looking,” Iyer quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
“Gagan Khoda spoke to me and said that I have been doing well and asked me to keep up the consistency. Never spoke to me about the selection process or something, he was just talking about the present that time. Every player wants to play for the country, that is the eventual goal. I was disappointed when I was dropped and fairly not getting chances. But when your teams doing well that’s more important. But for now the focus is on IPL and leading Delhi to glory,” he added.
Delhi’s squad has been bolstered by the return of Shikhar Dhawan, who was traded from Sunrisers Hyderabad prior the IPL 2019 auction. Moreover, the squad also includes proven performers such as Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw, Kagiso Rabada, Chris Morris among others.
After years of underachievement, the Delhi franchise is looking to make a fresh start in IPL 2019 and Iyer is confident of the team’s chances this year.
“For now the team is looking amazing. But as we all know that the main idea is to replicate that on the ground. Last year we weren’t getting great starts with the openers. But as the tournament progressed we started winning and that helped us get a few positives. So we sat down and analyzed what went wrong and are now happy with what we have. In case anyone gets injured or leaves mid-way we have an equally good bench strength with 25 players in the squad. A lot of newcomers are among them and they will be looking to give their best,” he said.
On a personal front, Iyer put on stellar performances during the recently held Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. His jaw-dropping innings of 155 (47 balls) became a domestic T20 record as he surpassed the previous best of 128 not out by Rishabh Pant.
“It really helps for a batsman coming on the back of a really great tournament (Syed Mushtaq Ali). If you have runs backing you up before an event like IPL then you are confident and have the self-belief that no matter whatever situation the team is stuck in you will get the best out of yourself and make sure that team wins. That’s what Mushtaq Ali did for me- I got a great start against Sikkim and I continued the same throughout,” he remarked.
The burden of captaincy has also helped Iyer evolve as a player.
“It has really helped me well. It has made me more mature in my approach, made me responsible the way I approach my innings. I see my teammates and support staff looking up to me when I get this role, I have evolved over the years and am really thankful to all those who believed in me,” he signed-off.
