‘He can once again become an India prospect’ - Sunil Gavaskar heaps praise on Venkatesh Iyer’s IPL 2024 performances

Former Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar has lavished praise on Kolkata Knight Riders all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer. Gavaskar noticed the improvements Iyer has made in several areas of his game compared to last season.

Kolkata Knight Riders put in a magnificent performance in the summit clash of the IPL (Indian Premier League) 2024, bundling out Sunrisers Hyderabad for just 113 runs in a one-sided clash to win the title. The performance of Venkatesh was crucial in propelling KKR to a dominant win and their third IPL title. He amassed 52 runs in just  26 deliveries as KKR won the game by eight wickets.

Seeing the improvement in his performances, Sunil Gavaskar opined that Venkatesh could once again become an India prospect. 

"I feel his batting and thinking have changed a little this time and for the better. Due to that, I believe he can once again become an India prospect because he bowls as well. He is also a very good fielder. If you are a left-handed middle-order batter in T20 or 50-over cricket and can bowl a few overs as well, it is icing on the cake," Sunil Gavaskar told Star Sports. 

Gavaskar also took note of Iyer’s performances in 2023, and opined that while playing for India, he looked a little overconfident and was throwing his wickets due to the same.

"In the last season, he had played for India and was looking slightly overconfident, and was getting out because of that. Yes, I remember that he scored a century against Mumbai. It's not that his season was bad but he was getting out while trying to hit sixes or play big shots soon after his arrival," he added. 

It is worth noting that Venkatesh scored 404 runs in 14 innings, maintaining an average of 28.86 runs in the IPL 2023, and he has followed it up by amassing 370 runs in 13 innings, with an average of 46.25 in the IPL 2024.