How A Serious Injury Turned Out To Be A 'Blessing In Disguise' For Shreyas Iyer

Ever since Shreyas Iyer has started playing at the big level, he is being hailed as the next big thing in Indian cricket. Be it his stylish batting, captaincy, or the way he conducts himself in the field - Iyer makes sure to make an impact in every game. 

One of Shreyas' claim to fame is his leadership skills, which saw him taking over the reins of Delhi Capitals and taking them to the first IPL playoffs in 2019 and then in the Final in 2020. However, just when everything looked perfect for Iyer to make himself a permanent member of the Indian team, he dislocated his shoulder in 2021. 

His injury saw him getting ruled out of the first half of IPL 2021 and Rishabh Pant becoming the captain of the Delhi Capitals. Iyer came back in the second half of the season but Pant continued to lead DC. 

In an interview with Times Of India, Shreyas opened up about injury and the following events that happened. On being asked, which was the bigger low for him - injury or losing the captaincy, Shreyas said the former. 

“Injury. That was a bigger low. If that didn't happen they wouldn't have stepped me down as a captain. At Delhi Capitals, you saw the reflection of the environment at the start of 2021, which we created in 2019 & 20. The atmosphere was amazing. The players knew each other inside out, their strengths and weaknesses. I don't want to get deeper into it," the 27-year-old said. 

“Sometimes things just happen for the better. It's just that we come to know about it later. I was on a roll right in New Zealand and began feeling really confident of myself and my batting. As captain, I had an amazing season going in the IPL and I scored some 500 runs.”

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“I was in a good frame of mind and then that injury began playing on my mind. Forced breaks are never easy because you have to start all over again. Injuries and rehabs are painful. But I must say, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The injury had made me feel I was 50% of the player I otherwise am. Having fully recovered, I've come back fresh and feel good. So, whatever happens, happens for good,” Shreyas, who was recently bought and made the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders, said.