IPL 2024: AB de Villiers hails Shreyas Iyer’s brilliant captaincy

Under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer, Kolkata Knight Riders were the first team to qualify for the IPL 2024 playoffs. It is also the first time that the two-time champions will finish as the league leaders in the cash-rich tournament. Be it with the bat or bowl, KKR have been magnificent so far, winning nine out of their 13 matches so far. Recognising their incredible performance in the ongoing season, former cricketer AB de Villiers lauded skipper Iyer and pointed out the things that the Mumbai-born cricketer brings to the table.

De Villiers stated Iyer is a ‘smart cricketer’ and believes that he handles pressure well, which helped KKR massively in the cash-rich league. Notably, the 29-year-old juggled his bowlers well in the tournament as he was smart to use Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy in the powerplay whenever required and also did not hesitate to hand over the ball to Harshit Rana in the last over when star Pacer Mitchell Starc was available. 

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He was bold in his decision-making, which impressed De Villiers. The former South Africa captain remarked that Iyer did not panic in making key decisions, especially playing at Eden Gardens, which helped KKR do well in home matches.

“Shreyas Iyer has been absolutely incredible. There have been a lot of doubts and talks about him as captain. I punted him from the start of the tournament. He is a wise guy, a smart cricketer and I love the way he is calm and composed as a captain. He never seems to get rushed, never seems to panic even though you know deep down that you feel some panic, especially playing at the Eden Gardens," De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

Not easy to captain senior players: De Villiers

De Villiers also stated that it’s not easy for a captain to manage senior players in the squad but he believes that Iyer has done a commendable job in handling players like Sunil Narine and Andre Russell, who have a lot of experience in this format.

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“It's not easy to captain senior players who have been around for ages, especially Narine and Russell. We know that the West Indies have got different personalities, they are outgoing and can be outspoken sometimes. It must be sometimes difficult with a difference in culture to communicate properly with some of these experienced players,” he added.