IPL 2022: Shreyas Iyer applauds Prithvi Shaw for his knock against KKR

After tasting a defeat against his former side Delhi Capitals, Kolkata Knight Riders’ skipper Shreyas Iyer has praised Prithvi Shaw for his whirlwind knock against KKR. On Sunday, Delhi Capitals registered a comprehensive 44-runs victory over Kolkata Knight Riders at the Brabourne stadium.

Batting first, Delhi Capitals posted a substantial total of 215/5 in 20 overs courtesy of the fifties from Prithvi Shaw and David Warner. Chasing such a huge total, KKR’s skipper Shreyas Iyer played a brilliant knock of 54 runs off 34 deliveries but didn’t get enough support from the other end, resulting in a massive loss.

Prithvi Shaw can change a game in the powerplay: Shreyas Iyer

Praising his former Delhi Capitals teammate in the post-match conference, Iyer said that Shaw has the ability to change a game in the powerplay and he also struggled to set a field for the pocket-sized dynamo.

“Prithvi Shaw is a type of batsman who can change the game in the powerplay. I’ve played with him before, obviously. He hits the good shots and even as a captain, I can’t figure out how to set the field for him.” 

“Prithvi is someone who doesn’t go really big against spinners. Since he got a really good start, I tried to restrict the momentum that they got. I thought Varun and Sunil are really experienced bowlers, and they could have restricted at that point of time and give us a good hold,” Shreyas Iyer added.

Iyer also talked about the Knight Riders’ need to focus on the batting to hunt down big totals in the tournament.

“Absolutely not worried about the starts we’re getting. But when you’re chasing 214-215 you need to get off to a really good start. And, you know, you can’t think twice about what the bowler is going to bowl because you have to have that attacking mindset right from ball one and one mistake can get you out as a batsman,” said Shreyas Iyer.

“I wouldn’t blame anyone in this particular chase. But, yes, we have this history in the last few games that we didn’t get really good starts and obviously that is also something we need to work on. And this is just the early stage of the tournament. So, you know, once we start practising more, start executing stuff really well on the field, I think, things will be really taken care of pretty well,” Shreyas Iyer concluded.