'Absolute superstar' - Brendon McCullum lavishes massive praises on KKR captain Shreyas Iyer

Two-time champions and last season’s runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders will kick-start their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 campaign against Chennai Super Kings in the season opener. The encounter takes place at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday (March 26). In-form Shreyas Iyer will lead the Knight Riders this season and expectations are high from the right-handed batter.

On the eve of the competition, Shreyas received massive praises from KKR head coach Brendon McCullum, who has also served the franchise as a player. The former New Zealand captain reckons Shreyas has what it takes to be an absolute superstar of the game. The KKR coach even said their new skipper has the potential to become the franchise’s Player of the Decade.

Shreyas Iyer could be KKR’s best player of the decade: Brendon McCullum

”He’s a great buy. He could be the franchise player for KKR for the best part of the decade. We’ve got to start somewhere and that’s tomorrow,” McCullum was quoted as saying by the Times of India.

“He’s already incredibly well-respected around the world for what his game is about and what he’s been able to achieve. His best years are certainly in front of him. I think he’s got the potential to be an absolute superstar of the game so I can’t wait to work with him,” he added.

McCullum further stated that the new skipper shares the same sort of attacking mindset he had during his playing days. “We both share a common value of how we like to see the game played, which is you get a group of guys together, paint a vision and get the guys play the game positively, and try and embrace those who are around you,” he said further.

Notably, KKR splashed a whooping INR 12.25 crore to get Shreyas on board in the last month’s mega auction. Many are backing the 27-year-old to set the tournament on fire as Shreyas has been on a roll in his recent assignments. In fact, he slammed unbeaten half-centuries in his last three outings in T20Is.