Venkatesh Iyer may have been selected in the Indian squad for their upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa but with Hardik Pandya showcasing his fitness in the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL), Iyer could find himself on the bench for much of the series. Iyer was one of a number of players who have been tried out as an all-rounders in white-ball cricket while Pandya remained on the sidelines due to injuries.
As captain of Gujarat Titans, Pandya scored 413 runs and took four wickets in the eight innings in which he bowled, in addition to leading the team to a top-place finish in the league stage. Iyer insisted that he does not look at Pandya as competition and is instead looking to learn from the ace all-rounder.
“Absolutely not. Hardik Pandya is a superstar of the game; it will be an immense opportunity for me to learn so much from him. He has won so many games for our country, and I hope he keeps doing so. I am taking it as a beautiful opportunity to learn and observe him. There is no competition between us, he is way ahead, and I would like to play alongside him,” Iyer told Sports Tiger.
After a breakout season 2021, Iyer struggled with the bat this season, to the point that he was even dropped from the squad. While he enjoyed an upswing in form towards the end of the league stage, Iyer could score just 182 runs while batting in the top order at an average of 16.55 and strike rate of 107.69.
“I tried my best to perform well, and my process and approach were correct. I don’t have any regret as I did whatever I could do. But, I’ll confess that the results were a bit disappointing as they didn’t come in our favour. But we are hopeful that we will do well in upcoming seasons as we have the right set of players in our squad,” he said.
