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Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer played an invaluable knock to rescue his side in the ongoing 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) clash against the Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday.
Iyer, who has not had much to do with the bat this season courtesy KKR top-order's red-hot form, had to come out to bat in the powerplay itself. With the score reading 28/3, the left-handed batter had to play a subdued role with wickets falling at the other end.
After KKR were reduced to 57/5, Iyer forged an important partnership with impact sub-Manish Pandey. The duo mixed caution with aggression to keep the scoreboard ticking and not lose more wickets.
Venkatesh Iyer continued his dominant record against MI with this knock. He has scored two fifties and a hundred in four appearances against the five-time winners.
He was dismissed off the penultimate delivery of the innings by Jasprit Bumrah. The pacer managed to uproot the middle stump as Iyer tried to play an unorthodox shot to close out the innings.
Fans praised Venkatesh Iyer for rescuing KKR's innings by playing a crucial knock when the team were in trouble. Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
"Venkatesh Iyer may have many problems but owning Mi is not one of them," one tweet read.
"How underated is Venkatesh Iyer. He is not batting in his comfortable position making his this so invaluable," another tweet read.
"Venkatesh Iyer loves Wankhede & Mumbai Indians," another fan tweeted.
Venkatesh Iyer was involved in a huge mix-up with Andre Russell in the death overs
Iyer's brilliant innings was marred by Andre Russell's run out in the 17th over of the innings. After attempting a grounded reverse lap shot and finding a fielder, Iyer and Russell took the initiative for a single, but the former backed out, leaving Russell out in the cold.
The West Indies all-rounder made his way back into the crease but was far off as Pandya took the bails away. The dismissal played a huge role in KKR's final total as Iyer was left stranded to propel the total in the final overs.
