Venkatesh Iyer's all-round brilliance helps MP in SMAT quarters: Stats
Venkatesh Iyer made his presence felt in the quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Madhya Pradesh against Saurashtra on Wednesday. Iyer claimed 2/23 from his three overs as Saurashtra posted 173/7 in 20 overs. And then with the bat, the southpaw his a crucial unbeaten 38 from 33 balls as MP (174/4) got past Saurashtra's score. Here are the details.
Two wickets with the ball
Saurashtra kept losing wickets at regular intervals as Iyer too cashed in when he dismissed Sammar Gajjar in the 15th over to reduce the opponent team to 100/5. In the 17th over, he got Ruchit Ahir (11) as Saurashtra were reduced to 128/6. It was Chirag Jani's 80* that helped Saurashtra get past 170. He fought from one end and delivered.
A crucial unbeaten knock on offer
Iyer arrived to bat in the 8th over (62/2). He stayed still and held his fort from one end, allowing the others to go the aggressive way. He shared three crucial partnerships along the way. His 38* was laced with two fours and two sixes.
1,400 runs for Iyer in SMAT
In 8 matches this season, Iyer has raced to 210 runs at an average of 70. His strike rate is an impressive 161.53. Iyer recorded his best score of 38* this season. He has smashed 17 fours and 10 sixes. As per ESPNcricinfo, in 60 SMAT matches, Iyer owns 1,400 runs at 45.16 (SR: 143.29). Overall in T20s, he has 2,879 runs at 36.91.
His bowling numbers
In 122 T20 matches, Iyer owns a tally of 46 scalps at 25.93. In the ongoing SMAT campaign, he owns four scalps for MP. He has bowled in 7 of the 8 matches for MP this season.
IPL 2025 auction: KKR re-signed Venkatesh Iyer for ₹23.75 crore
Iyer, a star performer in the past few Indian Premier League (IPL) seasons, will play for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 2025 edition. The team bought him for ₹23.75 crore in the mega auction. Despite his immense contributions to the franchise had earlier opted against retaining him. Having played 50 IPL games, he owns 1,326 runs at 31.57 (50s: 11, 100s: 1).
