It was around 2:30 pm in India when Venkatesh Iyer dropped me a WhatsApp message suggesting we could speak. I was getting ready to leave Manchester for Edinburgh and, I must say, was looking forward to the conversation. Venkatesh is one of the most articulate cricketers around and an excellent speaker. In an interview, it helps a lot if the subject has clarity of thought and is willing to go deeper while answering questions. Soon after discussing his injury, we settled down for a deep dive.
While the detailed interview will be aired today, in this piece I want to focus on what he said about Virat Kohli, his opening partner for RCB in the playoffs and the final.
“How was it batting with Virat?” was what I asked, curious to know a little more about Kohli’s work ethic.
It was as if Venkatesh had been waiting for the question.
“There is so much to learn from him,” he told me. “In the chase, the plan was to go hard at the top. In a 160-run chase, games are often won in the powerplay, and GT have a very good bowling attack. At RCB, the plan is always to target the opposition’s strong point, and that’s what Virat does to perfection. Even when we lost a couple of quick wickets, there was never any panic because we knew that with Virat there, we had control. His very presence in the middle gives us a mental edge over the opposition. And, as we all saw, he stayed out there till the end and closed out the game.”
As I was about to ask a follow-up question, he started again.
“With Virat there, you know you can’t be loose with your drills. He is always full of intensity and commitment, and when you see someone who has achieved as much as he has do it day in and day out, ball after ball, both on and off the field, you feel inspired to do the same. His presence itself makes a big difference, and that’s something each of us has used as a learning.”
The conversation was getting interesting, and I asked him about batting together. What kind of conversations do they have in the middle when they are out there?
“Not much is said in a T20 game,” said Venkatesh. “Each of us knows our respective roles and, with Virat, the one thing he always says is to do things with passion and aggression. He insists on clarity of action. So, if you want to play a defensive shot – not that you do so very often in a T20 contest – even that should be played with intent and conviction. You should be aggressive in your approach, and that’s something I have learnt from him.”
As the conversation was about to move on to other subjects, Venkatesh stopped me.
“I have never seen a more hard-working cricketer,” he said. “He is still the hardest-working player in the team, and once you see him up close, you understand why he has achieved as much as he has. He prepares for every situation that can present itself because he has encountered every kind of situation in his career. That’s why he wasn’t the least bit flustered during the chase, and that’s a huge positive for us at RCB. For all that he has done for the franchise, he deserves all the success that is coming his way.”
Clearly, the Kohli aura is something RCB continue to benefit from and, based on what we saw in the final, he still has much left to give the franchise over the next couple of years.
Venkatesh also spoke about the roles of Andy Flower, Mo Bobat and Dinesh Karthik; how clarity about his own role helped him; why RCB fans are the best in the IPL; and what this trophy means to them.
The full interview will be available at 12 noon on RevSportz.
The post A RevSportz Exclusive “He insists on clarity of action”: Venkatesh Iyer on Virat Kohli’s Relentless Drive and RCB Impact appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.
