‘I am a huge admirer of Hardik bhai, have huge respect for him,’ reveals Venkatesh Iyer

Venkatesh Iyer has often been compared with Hardik Pandya for a place in India’s squad for the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place in Australia later this year. Iyer was called-up for Team India following the last T20 World Cup and since then, he has been a regular member of the limited-overs squad.

Before Iyer, Hardik was India's regular starter as the pace-bowling all-rounder; however, the 28-year-old's injury concerns forced him on the sidelines and eventually out of the international setup. Pandya will make a return in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he will be captaining the Gujarat Titans.

Iyer finally opened up on the comparison with Hardik in a recent interview with Times of India. Iyer said he is a huge admirer of Hardik ‘bhai’ and has huge respect for him. He further mentioned that this comparison does not pay heed to him as a cricketer.

“As a cricketer, I have huge respect for Hardik bhai for what he has done for India. It is unbelievable. I am a huge admirer of Hardik bhai. These comparisons are very natural, but I pay no heed to them,,” Iyer was quoted as saying by TOI.

After Iyer’s recent all-round heroics, India captain Rohit Sharma had heaped praises on him, saying that he wants to groom the 27-year-old for the No. 6 position. 

When asked for his thoughts on Rohit’s comments, Iyer said he is flexible and ready to bat at any position for both club and country.

“Yes, absolutely. I am ready for any position and situation. As a professional cricketer, I have always maintained that I need to be very flexible. We have to understand that we are entering a team where there is cut-throat competition and that too for every role and for every player,” he added.

Iyer first grabbed headlines with a stellar second-half of the IPL 2021 for his franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). In 10 matches, he scored 370 runs at an astounding average of 41.11 and a strike rate of 128.47, with four half-centuries. He also picked up three wickets in four games he bowled.