Punjab Kings scripted history on Tuesday as they defended the lowest total in the IPL 2025 match against Kolkata Knight Riders at Mullanpur. After opting to bat first, Shreyas Iyer and co were bundled out for paltry 111 and were heading towards a shameful defeat. However, the destiny had other plans in store as PBKS pulled off an unbelievable heist and bowled out KKR for 95 and clinched the victory by 16 runs. As the celebrations were on in New Chandigarh, PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer reunited with KKR CEO Venky Mysore.
Iyer was roped in by KKR during the 2022 mega auctions and was appointed as the skipper. He missed the 2023 season due to an injury but upon his return in 2024, he guided KKR to the title. However, things got ugly after the season as KKR did not retain their winning captain and he went on to join PBKS at a whopping price of Rs 26.75 crore.
After being released by KKR, Iyer had stated that there was a lack of communication from the management and he was really disappointed about it. Now, three months after that statement, both Iyer and Mysore met each other at Mullanpur and visuals of their meeting went viral on social media.
Earlier in January, Iyer had opened up about the retention snub by KKR and how disappointed he felt about it.
“Certainly, I had a fantastic time winning the championship at KKR. The fan following was outstanding, they were electrifying in the stadium and I loved every moment I spent there. So obviously, we had a conversation straight after the IPL championship. But for a few months, there was a layover and no concrete effort in having a retention talk. I was perplexed about what’s happening. So, because of a lack of communication, we came to a situation where we parted ways, mutually. And that’s the long and short of it,” Shreyas said in an interaction with Indian Express.
On the other hand, Mysore had stated that Iyer was KKR’s “No.1 pick” for the retentions but it was the batter’s decision to part ways with the franchise.
“He was No. 1 on our list (for retention). He’s captain and we have to build everything around the leadership. We picked him for this specific reason in 2022,” Mysore had said while speaking to RevSportz.
Mysore, however, revealed that the auction retention process is one that requires mutual agreement, and that could not happen with Shreyas Iyer.
“What is fundamental to a retention is that it’s a matter of mutually agreeing. It’s not a one-sided right that the franchise has, the player has to consider various factors and agree,” said Mysore.
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