Shreyas Iyer opened up on his camaraderie with skipper Rishabh Pant and revealed how the left-handed batsman makes him feel comfortable while he is batting on the other end.
Delhi Capitals middle-order batsman and regular skipper Shreyas Iyer opened up on his camaraderie with new IPL 2021 skipper Rishabh Pant and revealed how the left-handed southpaw batsman makes him feel comfortable while he is batting on the other end.
Shreyas Iyer Revealed Rishabh Pant Make Him Comfortable
There were concerns over the Delhi Capitals franchise retaining Rishabh Pant as captain for the remainder of the IPL 2021 despite Shreyas Iyer’s return from injury, but all those have been waved away with the two players stitching important partnerships for DC in their last two games.
Against Rajasthan Royals on Saturday, the duo added 62 runs together for the third wicket and their partnerships were key for DC in posting a total of 154/6 in 20 wickets on a slow batting track.
RR fell short by 33 runs and lost the match, but after the win, Shreyas Iyer, who scored 43 runs in 32 balls – and was named man of the match was questioned about his partnership with Rishabh Pant after DC openers Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw were dismissed cheaply.
“Both (Dhawan and Shaw) of them are aggressive batsmen, just didn’t work out for them today. Whenever they get going, they give us a good start. Today unfortunately it didn’t happen, so I was like we have to build a partnership here,” Iyer said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
“To be honest I really didn’t know how it was playing so I backed myself (the pitch?). Decided that whatever happens, I’m just going to back my instincts, see the ball closely and try to hit in the gaps, and take over the spinners later on.”
Batting first, Delhi Capitals faltered early on, losing both of their openers inside five overs. Rishabh Pant (24) and Shreyas Iyer (43) steadied the ship in the middle overs with ultimately the team finishing on 154/6 after 20 overs. Chasing, RR looked uncomfortable right from the start. The Rajasthan Royals lost three wickets inside five overs and despite an unbeaten 70-run knock by skipper Sanju Samson, they failed to chase the target in the end.
Shreyas Iyer Relaxes At The Other End As Rishabh Pant Takes On The Bowler Right At The Onset
Shreyas Iyer also opened up on his equation with Rishabh Pant and how the fact that they have known each other and batted together for years has played a catalyst behind the smooth relation both share.
Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant steadied the Delhi Capitals ship with a 62-run alliance for the third wicket as the Mumbai batsman scored 43 from 32 balls, his innings included one boundary and a couple of sixes. Rishabh Pant made a run-a-ball 24 and his innings was ended by Bangladesh’s left-arm pacer Mustafiur Rahman.
“And then Rishabh came in and we got a partnership of 50 runs. We’ve been batting for the last 5 years together playing for the same franchise,” Iyer added. “The camaraderie and gelling have turned pretty awesome over the last few years. He takes on the bowler as soon as he comes in. Really relaxes me at the other end. That communication has been set.”
Delhi Capitals beat Rajasthan Royals by 33 runs. RR continued to lose wickets at regular intervals in the 155-run chase. Skipper Sanju Samson remained unbeaten on 70 but it was not enough to win the match for RR. Apart from Sanju Samson, all the other Rajasthan Royals batsmen struggled against Delhi’s bowling attack with Mahipal Lomror being the only other batsman to go into double figures.