Hard-hitting batter Shreyas Iyer was on a different wicket on Friday evening in Mumbai. He was at an event organized by RPG Group in the basement of RPG House, along with content creators Navya Naveli Nanda and Niharika NM, and Anant Goenka, vice chairman of the RPG Group’s Zensar Technologies and CEAT.
There was a panel discussion on what happiness means to Gen-Z. Nikhil Taneja, head of youth oriented content platform Yuvaa, was the moderator.
Wearing a fashionably boxy black tshirt, yellow cargo pants, earrings and a dazzling smile, the 28-year-old Iyer spoke about his back injury and how he deals with pressure. Out of the game since April, he has recently resumed practice.
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“Whenever I walk back from training there are people waiting outside, wanting to take pictures. And they all ask, ‘When are you coming back?’ I don’t know myself when I’ll be back,” the Kolkata Knight Riders captain said.
Injuries are not easy to deal with. They can test patience and frustrate an athlete. Iyer says there are certain things he does to stay calm.
“I love to practice mindfulness, meditation and spend time with family. Family is the strongest support system which you will ever have,” he said.
One of India’s best No. 4 batters, Iyer said how juniors and seniors could both learn from each other if they shared a bond. Indian cricket is usually tight-lipped about the smallest of details about the dressing room. But Iyer let slip that Coach Rahul Dravid was always open for a conversation.
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“Rahul Dravid is always up for brainstorming. Now, this is a bit of TMI (Too Much Information),” Iyer said with a laugh.
On a serious note, he said, “When you talk to seniors, they also feel special from within and that way you can learn a lot of things. There is a lot of experience they have which we want to embrace, and that will only come through a lot of conversations with your seniors. So always respect your seniors and see to it that you have camaraderie with them.”
Iyer added that there was a lot seniors could learn from the young too, as they had new ideas and a fire in their belly.
If a performance doesn’t go well, Iyer said, he refrains from calling it a “failure”, and instead analyses where he went wrong. Once that is done, he likes to unwind so that he can forget about the disappointment for a while.
“I just try to learn what I did wrong,” he said. “To unwind, I like to play Playstation, or watch football, which I love. If there is time I like going on holidays.”
Iyer said he accepts the pressure of his job, and even enjoys it.
“Pressure is an integral part of my business. Without pressure, I won’t enjoy it,” he said. “When I see a full stadium and the atmosphere is electrifying, I get goose bumps. I love it. I take the pressure as an opportunity, and channel it through my motivation and focus.”
