Under Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) clinched their IPL title last season. However, the middle-order batter was not retained by the franchise, much to the shock of one and all.
After parting ways with KKR, Shreyas entered the mega auction with a base price of INR 2 crore. He was sold to the Punjab Kings (PBKS) for INR 26.75 crore, making him the second-most expensive player in IPL auction history.
With less than two weeks remaining for the IPL 2025, Shreyas Iyer claimed that he did not receive enough recognition after leading KKR to the title win last year.
"The major focus was to win the IPL, and thankfully, I won it. I personally felt I didn't get the recognition I wanted to after winning the IPL but at the end of the day, as long as you have self integrity and you keep doing the right things when no one is watching, that is more important and that is what I kept doing," Iyer told TOI in an interview.
"When I talk about recognition, it's about getting that respect. It was about the respect for whatever efforts I put on the field. I think sometimes it gets unnoticed but extremely satisfied with the efforts I put in because they weren't easy wickets to bat on," he explained.
Shreyas also spoke about how the last few months in international cricket have been fulfilling for him. He consistently performed under pressure in India’s triumphant Champions Trophy 2025 campaign, scoring 243 runs in five matches, including a critical knock of 48 in the title clash against New Zealand.
"Extremely satisfying. To be honest, it has been a journey, and I have learnt a lot in this phase of my life, where I got out of the contract after playing the 2023 ODI World Cup. I reassessed where I went wrong, what I should be doing, how well I need to focus on my fitness. I asked myself all these questions, prepared a routine, and started focussing on my training and the skills I added side by side," he remarked.
Iyer further reflected on his journey, saying, "Once I got continuous matches in domestic cricket, I figured out how important fitness was for me, especially when I raised my concerns at the start of the year. Overall I am extremely happy with myself... the way I came out of this, the way I handled the situation and most importantly I believed in myself."
