Venkatesh Iyer made his India debut on November 17, 2021. His last match yet was in February 2022. The all-rounder featured in 9 T20Is and a couple of ODIs, did a bit well here and there with the bat, but nothing striking enough.
And once Hardik Pandya was back in the Indian team post his back injury recovery and a stunning IPL 2022 season with Gujarat Titans, Venkatesh Iyer, who, on the other hand, had a poor second season with KKR, was dropped and, barring a couple of practice games, hasn’t played any international game. The chances of that look mild as well given his form hasn’t been impressive in recent months.
Venkatesh Iyer admitted that the competition for places in the game is extremely high, and, he reckoned, to keep one’s place, one must continue to adapt or “you perish”.
“See, I believe that in cricket, you adapt or you perish. The opportunities are limited and the talent is so much so it is great to be a part of the huge pool of talent. So you need to adapt to fit into the scenario or else you will be pushed behind the line. So I always look to contribute to the team in any way possible, whether it’s opening, batting in the middle-order or bowling a couple of overs,” Venkatesh Iyer told Sportskeeda.
I consider all levels the same: Venkatesh Iyer
Venkatesh Iyer stormed into the IPL with a scintillating display of performances as an opener for KKR in the second half of the IPL 2021, in the UAE, turning around the franchise’s tournament and helping them to the final. He got called up to the Indian team as Hardik Pandya was away nursing his back injury issues.
Now dropped, though, the 27-year-old cricketer from Indore has vowed to give his best at any level he plays.
“Due to the amount of competition, the pressure is the same across all levels (domestic, IPL, and international). The time that you take to adapt to the pressure of each level is probably different. But I consider all levels the same and you just have to go out and execute the skills that you have been working on for the past 10-15 years,” added the all-rounder.
Venkatesh Iyer’s next assignment will be the upcoming domstic season – unless he is miraculously called back to the Indian team if Pandya is unavailable or injured – later in the year.
