Harbhajan Singh Saw Me In Couple Of Net Sessions And Told Me "You Will Be KKR's Find This Season" - Venkatesh Iyer

Venkatesh Iyer, the name which has been on the lips of the fans for the past couple of months, has made quite an interesting revelation regarding veteran India off-spinner and his Kolkata Knight Riders teammate Harbhajan Singh.

After making impressive performances in the second half of the IPL 2021, Venkatesh Iyer has been given his maiden India call-up for the upcoming home T20I series against New Zealand.

However, the left-handed opener has revealed that Harbhajan had predicted him to be KKR’s “find of the season” after watching him in just a couple of net sessions.

“One thing that Harbhajan Singh told me when the IPL began, after he saw me in just a couple of net sessions, when I wasn’t part of the set-up: ‘You will be KKR’s find this season. I have complete faith in you and when you get the opportunity, you will definitely be able to do it’,” Venkatesh Iyer told ESPNcricinfo.

To be honest, I didn’t believe it: Venkatesh Iyer

Venkatesh Iyer did emerge to be KKR’s find of the season; the southpaw played a crucial role in reviving KKR’s season and launching them till the final. He scored 370 runs in 10 matches in the UAE leg, with the help of four fifties, including a half-century in the final vs CSK, but it wasn’t enough to see his side to the title.

The 26-year-old said that he initially thought Harbhajan was just boosting some confidence in him by praising the youngster.

“To be honest, I didn’t believe it. I thought, why is this guy telling me so much when he hasn’t even seen me in practice games? I thought he was just [being] a good person and comforting me. But I’m happy that it turned out to be slightly true. That’s something that warms my heart,” the all-rounder added.

It remains to be seen if Venkatesh Iyer gets to make his India debut against the Kiwis. Also, it would be interesting to see how he goes should he be given a middle-order slot in the all-rounder’s role in the absence of Hardik Pandya.

India’s squad for New Zealand T20Is:

Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohd. Siraj

Also Read: IND vs NZ 2021: Kyle Jamieson Opts Out Of T20I Series, Joins The Test Squad