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Shreyas Iyer missed the entire IPL 2023 season due to injury. He was the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and his unavailability forced the team to assign the reins to Nitish Rana, who had never captained an IPL team before.
Rana did an impressive job, leading the Kolkata Knight Riders in his first season as captain. His leadership impressed fans so much that some of them even wanted him to continue for IPL 2024.
However, Kolkata Knight Riders have assigned the vice-captain's role to Rana for IPL 2024. Shreyas Iyer is expected to be back in the purple and gold colors, but as per reports, he is still not 100% fit. There have been contrary reports to his fitness, with one of them even suggesting that he might not be available for the first few games.
Although Nitish Rana did a fantastic job as captain in IPL 2023, here are three reasons why KKR desperately need Shreyas Iyer to be fit for IPL 2024.
#1 Shreyas Iyer was in the form of his life in 2023
Shreyas Iyer was at his peak in the year 2023. He had a dream ODI World Cup campaign, where he shattered multiple records. The whirlwind century in the crucial semifinal match against New Zealand established Iyer as a big-match player.
Besides, he also scored a ton against Australia in a bilateral ODI game ahead of the World Cup. Unfortunately for KKR, Iyer was unavailable throughout the 2023 edition.
He struggled in red-ball cricket earlier this year, but Iyer was in splendid touch in white-ball matches last year. If he continues in the same vein, it will be a massive boost for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
#2 Shreyas Iyer's absence will leave a big hole in KKR's batting order
Last season, Kolkata Knight Riders struggled to retain a strong batting lineup for the entire season. Unavailabilities of certain players and poor form of a few available names compelled the Knight Riders to make frequent changes, which led to the team's failure.
If Shreyas Iyer is unavailable, it will leave KKR in a similar position because they don't have a like-for-like replacement.
If Iyer is fit to play all games, he can bat at number four, ensuring that the rest of the batters also retain their positions. In case KKR do not have their skipper available in the squad, they might end up trying different players in his position, unsettling the team once again.
#3 Iyer has an excellent record as captain in IPL
Iyer brought about a massive change in Delhi Capitals' fortunes after taking over the team's reins in the year 2018. He led the team to the third position in 2019, followed by a runners-up finish in 2020.
Unfortunately, an injury ruled him out of the 2021 season, and he ended up losing DC's captaincy to Rishabh Pant. Iyer then moved to KKR in 2022. The team narrowly missed out on a place in the top-4 that season. Considering his excellent record as captain, KKR will benefit a lot if he is available for all matches.
