Madhya Pradesh all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer said that he was very happy after being selected in the Indian team for the upcoming three-match T20I series against New Zealand at home which begins on November 17.
The three T20Is will be played as follows - November 17 in Jaipur, November 19 in Ranchi, and November 21 in Kolkata.
In an interview with Times of India, Iyer revealed that it was his teammate Avesh Khan, who broke the news of their selection in the Indian team. Iyer was in his room after Madhya Pradesh's Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 match against Kerala when Avesh gave him the good news.
In fact, Avesh Khan was also rewarded for his brilliant outing in the IPL 2021, as was also picked in the 16 man squad for the T20I series against the Black Caps.
"I am so happy. I worked really hard for it. Honestly, I didn't expect this. Every time when I go in the middle, I just want to perform and put up as many runs as possible for my team. I am really thankful to the selectors, captain, and all my seniors and coaches for this. It is a dream of every cricketer to wear an India jersey someday and the day has come. I am so so happy. The words are not enough to describe the feeling. Avesh broke this big news to me," Iyer told TimesofIndia.com.
Iyer came into the limelight after being asked to open by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the second half of the IPL 2021 in UAE. Given the license to go after the bowling in the powerplay, Iyer scored 370 runs in 10 matches, averaging 41.11. He also hit 37 fours and 14 sixes on his IPL debut, at a strike rate of 128.47.
He also picked 3 wickets with his medium-pace bowling and selectors are reportedly looking at him as an alternate bowling all-rounder to Hardik Pandya, who was dropped from the team. Though it was his batting in the IPL that caught everyone's attention, Iyer is a genuine all-rounder. He has as many as 46 wickets in domestic cricket, across formats in 87 matches.
"I am an allrounder. I will look forward to fitting in whatever role my team (India) would want from me. I am not thinking about the opposition at the moment. I am just looking forward to performing for my team. I have learnt to bat fearlessly. I always wanted to be a fearless batsman. I go out to bat with a lot of confidence. I am ready to bat at any position and bowl in any situation," Iyer said.
Rohit Sharma was named the new India T20I captain with Rahul Dravid taking over the head coach role.
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"I am really excited to play under Rohit bhai. I am really looking forward to it. He is such a great player. The team looks really strong. I am sure we will perform well. It will be a huge learning experience as well and it will be exciting to play under Rohit bhai," Iyer further told TimesofIndia.com.
Iyer also talked about the tips he got from Virat Kohli during his time as the net bowler for Team India during the T20 World Cup 2021 in UAE.
"During the nets sessions, I had interactions with most of the senior players. Virat bhai said just be focused on what you are doing. He also said you are doing good and keep performing and keep working hard. He asked me to keep focusing on my game. I will remember those tips from Virat bhai forever," Iyer signed off.
(TOI inputs)
