T20 World Cup 2024: Shreyas Iyer in race for India's captaincy? MSK Prasad makes shocking revelations

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Shreyas Iyer was once a strong candidate, even ahead of Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya, for the India National Cricket Team’s captaincy, and even his grooming process was well started during the tenure of the MSK Prasad-led selection committee.

Recently, the former Indian chief selector, Prasad, revealed that they had started grooming Iyer as a captain, unlike Hardik Pandya or Ravindra Jadeja, and they found a potential successor to Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the KKR skipper. However, things changed after his tenure ended with the BCCI.

Prasad said that Iyer's captaincy journey has been systematic, handing him the leadership of India A in numerous series over, wherein he won 8 out of 10 series as captain as part of his development as a leader. He mentioned that the Mumbai batter showed great results as a leader, and that’s why Iyer was prioritized over Rishabh Pant as the next captaincy candidate.

Shreyas Iyer has been groomed as captain: MSK Prasad

He stressed that Iyer has a better chance of succeeding as a skipper in international cricket when he gets the opportunity, and this evident is in the KKR’s campaign in the ongoing IPL 2024. However, he is struggling to get going with the bat this season.

MSK Prasad was quoted as saying by Rev Sports: “Shreyas Iyer, unlike Hardik Pandya or Ravindra Jadeja, has been groomed (as a captain). He has come through a system. If you go back to the stats, in the last two years, when we were at the helm, Shreyas Iyer led the side (India A). I think out of the 10 series that India A played, we won 8.

In the majority of those series, Shreyas led the side. He has been in and around as captain. He has been groomed for that particular slot. We felt that post Virat, post Rohit Sharma, you needed someone to lead the side that's when we started thinking about Shreyas Iyer or Rishabh Pant. But even ahead of Pant was Iyer as a captain.”

MSK Prasad lauds KKR's impact on Shreyas Iyer's growth as captain

Meanwhile, Prasad further highlighted Iyer's leadership journey, saying his grooming process got a real bang with his stint as captain of the Delhi Capitals (DC) under Ricky Ponting's mentorship. Despite Iyer's removal from the Delhi Capitals (DC), the former Indian chief selector lauded Rishabh Pant's commendable performance as his replacement.

The former Indian wicketkeeper stressed Iyer's subsequent move to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2022, where he was entrusted with captaincy responsibilities, contributing to his growth as a leader. Prasad highlighted the importance of strong team management at the start of a player’s captaincy career, saying Iyer is hugely benefiting from strong support at KKR.

Prasad said that Iyer is young, and KRR is going to invest in him, so he is expecting that the Indian star will evolve into a wonderful captain in the next two to three years. Notably, Iyer has been remarkable as KKR captain in the ongoing IPL 2024, where the franchise is currently ranked second in the standings with 14 points from 10 games so far.

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