Former Indian cricketer and World Cup hero Gautam Gambhir made a bold claim about Venkatesh Iyer’s future in the 50-overs format. Venkatesh Iyer, who made his ODI debut for team India against South Africa in the recently concluded series, failed to make the best of his opportunity.
In the two ODIs he played, Iyer scored just 24 runs with the bat, while he remained wicketless with the ball when he got the opportunity to bowl in the second ODI. He was dropped for the third ODI match in Cape Town.
Venkatesh Iyer impressed one and all with his terrific performances in the 2021 edition of the IPL. He had scored 370 runs in 10 matches and played an instrumental role in KKR’s journey to the final of the tournament.
He was infact touted as a long-term alternative for India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya for his all-around abilities, however, he has so far failed to impress everyone with his performance with both ball and the bat.
Meanwhile, Gautam Gambhir feels Venkatesh Iyer doesn’t have the maturity level to play in the 50-over format yet and should only be considered for the shortest format of the game
“I feel he should only be considered for T20 cricket. Because he doesn’t have that level of maturity yet. He has been given an opportunity to play international level after watching him in only 7-8 IPL matches. If you are going by IPL performances, then play him in T20 cricket. ODI is a completely different ball game and a completely different beast,”
Further, Gautam Gambhir also highlighted the fact that how Iyer was playing in the opening position for Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, he was used as a finisher in the lower-middle order. He said:
“Iyer had opened in IPL, now he is playing in the middle order. Send him back. If you are considering him for ODI cricket then tell his IPL franchise to play him in the middle order. But I feel he should be kept for T20s only, that too only as an opener, if he plays at that position in IPL.”
