‘I remember …’, Shreyas Iyer, from the ball boy to the IPL, told the name of his favorite player

Shreyas iyer on his favorite player ipl 2025: Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain Shreyas Iyer recalled the time when he was a ball boy during the match between Mumbai Indians (Mi) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Wankhede Stadium during the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He said that this was his first experience of the competition and Ross Taylor of New Zealand, who played for RCB, also had a brief conversation with him. Iyer, who gave Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) his third and first title in 10 years last year and took Delhi Capitals to the finals, they will aim to repeat the same magic with PBks when they will start their campaign against Gujarat Titans at Narendra Modi Stadium on March 25.

Talking to Jiohotstar at the ‘Superstars’ program, Iyer said, “I have grown up playing street cricket in my area and at that time I was playing for the under-14 team of Mumbai. All the children of the Mumbai team were appointed as a ball boy and it was my first close experience of IPL. I remember that I was shy and fantastic, but I was lucky, but I was lucky to be a player. When contacted, I felt that I am alone and I also decided to try.

Ross Taylor was one of my favorite players at that time, so I went to him and said, ‘Sir, I am your big fan.’ He was very cute and thanked me. At that time, it was common to ask for bat or gloves, but I was very shy to ask, even if I really wanted to do so. “

He also recalled the meeting with Punjab Kings all-rounder Irfan Pathan during the same match and said, “I remember Irfan Pathan standing on long-on. There is a memory that remains with me even after so many years. “

Since his debut in 2015, Iyer has scored 3,127 runs at an average of 32.23, with a strike rate of 127.47, with 21 half -centuries. His best score is 96. During his first season with Delhi Capitals in 2015, he won the ’emerging player’ by scoring 439 runs in 14 matches at an average of 33.77. In 2018, Iyer got the first chance of captaincy with DC and in 2020, he took the team to the finals, where he lost to Mumbai Indians (Mi). In 2022, he was taken to KKR and won the 2024 season with him under the supervision of Gautam Gambhir.