Vijay Hazare Trophy LIVE: Venkatesh Iyer slams 80 ball 100, justifies 8 Cr IPL 2022 retention by KKR – Venkatesh Iyer continues his stellar rise after the all-rounder slammed a sensational century in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. Iyer, who made his debut in IPL 2021 Phase 2 has enjoyed a productive last few months, earning himself a call-up to the Indian team as a potential replacement for Hardik Pandya. The Madhya Pradesh star starred for KKR and led them to the final, and was subsequently retained, a decision which could turn out to be a masterstroke for the two-time champions. Follow InisdeSport.IN for more updates
Vijay Hazare Trophy LIVE: Venkatesh Iyer slams 80 ball 100, justifies 8 Cr IPL 2022 retention by KKR
Venkatesh Iyer was retained by Kolkata Knight Riders for a whopping 8 Cr before the IPL 2022 auction and the all-rounder has already shown a glimpse of why it could turn out to be a shrewd move by the franchise. Batting at No 4, Venkatesh first smashed a 84-ball 112 (7×4, 4×6) and in an entertaining 169-run partnership with Shubham Sharma (82 from 67 balls; 9×4, 1×6) to take them 329/9 after they were put in by Kerala skipper Sanju Samson.
In reply, Kerala were bowled out for 289 in 49.4 overs with Venkatesh bagging 3/55 in a complete all-round performance by the Madhya Pradesh star. With a clear dearth in pace bowling all-rounders in the country, Venkatesh Iyer comes up as a rare breed and his performance only bodes well for KKR and Team India. Iyer has been a real find and scored 370 runs in just 10 IPL games for KKR, helping them reach the IPL 2021 final.
Venkatesh Iyer was well known for his exploits in the domestic circuit, but it was in the IPL that he took the world by storm. Picked up for just Rs 20 lakh, the Madhya Pradesh became a household name with his fearless hitting at the top of the order, proving the right impetus to KKR. Such was the impact of his performances, the two-time champions retained ahead of the likes of Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana and Rahul Tripathi. KKR paid Rs 8 crore to retain the Indian all-rounder, 40 times more than what they paid for his services the previous year.
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Vijay Hazare Trophy LIVE: Venkatesh Iyer slams 80 ball 100, justifies 8 Cr IPL 2022 retention by KKR
Venkatesh Iyer in IPL
- Matches: 10
- Runs: 370
- Wickets: 3
- IPL 2021 price: Rs 20lakh
- IPL 2022 retention price : Rs 8 crore
