Still fresh in memory, Chandrakant Pandit's time with Kolkata Knight Riders ended without renewal. Though he won’t continue, the team’s victory in IPL 2024 lights up his legacy. A key architect behind their success, Pandit steps away after shaping a winning season. His impact lingers, even as KKR moves forward under new guidance.
Yet what came next stirred surprise everywhere in cricket. Even after guiding KKR to victory, captain Shreyas Iyer got let go before the following season began. Landing at Punjab Kings (PBKS) instead, the middle-order batsman found a strong footing, pushing his new side into the IPL 2025 final while staying undefeated through the first half dozen games of 2026.
Letting Shreyas Iyer go: A decision that still lingers
That conversation made Pandit pause. The absence of Iyer, he said, had clearly been felt within the team. To RevSportz, he pointed out how deep the player's influence ran, both with bat and voice. His presence shaped more than just scores.
“Unfortunately, we missed him,” Pandit said. “Shreyas Iyer is a wonderful player who led KKR to the title, and I truly admire how he handled the team. But sometimes, team strategies and circumstances force such decisions. As a coach, I did feel bad; it wasn’t intentional, but things didn’t work out. It’s not just Shreyas; I feel the same about players like Phil Salt as well.”
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Gratitude poured in from Pandit, directed at KKR’s leadership, Shah Rukh Khan among them, alongside Jay Mehta, Juhi Chawla, plus Venky Mysore as CEO, for standing by him throughout his time there. Support never wavered, he noted, thanks to those names lighting the path.
At 64, he spoke up about Iyer missing out on India’s T20 squad, highlighting how tough it is just to get a place in the side. Though older now, his voice still carries weight when discussing selection battles that young players face today.
“Shreyas has performed well for India, but these situations are common. Team selection often involves balancing experience with emerging talent. With the depth we have, it becomes difficult to accommodate everyone,” he explained.
Still, Pandit saw growth in Shreyas Iyer, not just with the bat but also as someone others follow. Even after the loss, PBKS stayed steady under him, showing nerve when it mattered. What stands out, said Pandit, is how Iyer plays less for the spotlight and more for results. Rather than react to the noise around, he leans into what helps the team move forward.
28-year-old Shreyas Iyer sits comfortably among the top run-scorers this campaign after racking up 208 across five knocks, his form sharp, his timing precise. That kind of output tends to reignite conversations about national selection, especially when batters are striking above 180. His latest flurry hasn’t gone unnoticed; voices like Pandit now point firmly toward inclusion. Consistency like this often shifts opinions behind closed doors. A recall to the shortest format feels less like speculation and more like inevitability.
“It would be great to see him get another opportunity. Missing out on a World Cup hurts, but those decisions lie with the selectors. We’ve seen similar cases before, like Padmakar Shivalkar, who couldn’t break into the national side due to the presence of Bishan Singh Bedi,” Pandit noted. Focused on comebacks, not setbacks, that’s how he described Shreyas Iyer’s approach, one still shaping what we see each time he steps onto the field.
