IPL 2021: There's A Lot Of Yuvraj Singh In Venkatesh Iyer - Parthiv Patel

Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel has been left so astonished by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batsman Venkatesh Iyer that he even compared the batting “flow” of the youngster to the likes of Yuvraj Singh.

It just took two innings for Iyer to become a fan favourite. On his IPL debut, against RCB, he scored 41 runs off 27 balls with the help of 7 fours and a six; in his second outing, on Thursday against the Mumbai Indians — the left-hander from Indore hammered the MI bowling attack for 53 runs off just 30 balls in an innings laced with four fours and three maximums.

Parthiv Patel reckons Iyer will have a remarkable future, as not only he can open but bat in the middle-order too while additionally offering handy medium pace as well.

“One of the great things about him, having seen him, he can not only open, he can bat from 1 to 9 and bowl as well. So he will have a great future. I think there is a lot of Yuvraj Singh in him. There is a lot of flow,” Parthiv Patel said while speaking with Star Sports. 

He went out and played fearless cricket: Parthiv Patel

Further, Parthiv Patel, a former opener himself, was awestruck by the fearlessness of Iyer as he played his shots against Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, and Adam Milne; he hit Boult, one of the best new ball exponent, for a six in the very first over of the innings.

“We do talk about a lot of boundaries. But the maturity that Venkatesh Iyer showed was superb. We are talking about someone who is not an India A player, someone who has not played international cricket. 

“He showed so much maturity and courage to go out there and back himself. That’s something we always look out for in young players in the IPL. He went out and played fearless cricket,” the commentator added.

With two emphatic victories over RCB and MI — KKR have jumped to the number four spot. They will next meet Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Abu Dhabi on Sunday afternoon.

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