'He Is A Smart Captain': How Shreyas Iyer & Vijaykumar Vyshak Halted Ayush Mhatre's Juggernaut

Star Karnataka and Punjab Kings pacer Vijaykumar Vyshak has said that with Ayush Mhatre going all guns blazing, he and skipper Shreyas Iyer decided to bowl wide yorkers, so that the Chennai Super Kings star was forced to hit on the other side of the ground and give away his wicket.

Vyshak bowled his first over in CSK’s fifth, conceding 10 runs after Mhatre launched a six off the third delivery. He returned in the 11th over and gave away another four to Ayush.

When Vyshak came back for his third over in the 13th, Mhatre was on 69 off 41. He hit another four off Vyshak but was dismissed on the very next delivery, caught by Yuzvendra Chahal at short third.

How did Vyshak plan for the wicket?

“As I said, Ayush was batting really well, so the captain

decided we would go for wide yorkers. The plan was to make him hit the other side of the ground, since he had already scored plenty through long-on, mid-wicket and square leg,” Vyshak replied to a query from News18 CricketNext during a media interaction.

“We gave away a few boundaries, but kept the run rate around 10, which is crucial on a flat wicket in T20s to apply pressure. Credit to Shreyas, he is a smart captain, thought this through and we just executed the plan,” Vyshak added.

The star pacer gave away 38 runs in his four overs, while dismissing Mhatre and Sarfaraz Khan, who was batting on 32 off 12.

Punjab Kings have momentum on their side. Under the captaincy of Iyer, who is well-acquainted with Eden Gardens conditions, they arrive with two victories from as many games.

“We are taking it one game at a time. KKR is a strong team, they have performed well even if they have not won recently and have a solid batting lineup. Our coaches, bowling staff and analysts will study the conditions and help us plan accordingly,” Vyshak said.