KKR Star Venkatesh Iyer's Indirect Swipe At SRH, Says "Aggressing Doesn't Mean Tonking Every Ball"

Venkatesh Iyer defined what aggression means to him and the Kolkata Knight Riders after outwitting the free-scoring Sunrisers Hyderabad with an all-round show in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the iconic Eden Gardens. The record signing of the defending champions, Venkatesh, kicked off the 18th edition of the cash-rich league with a string of low scores. In his first two outings, KKR's vice-captain registered just 3 and 6 before breaking the shackles against the Sunrisers.

After Angkrish Raghuvanshi's dismissal, the Knight Riders tottered at 106/4 in the 13th over. Venkatesh upped the ante and fired a blistering 60 from 29 deliveries at a rollicking strike rate of 206.90, studded with seven boundaries and three towering maximums.

His single-handed effort, combined with Rinku Singh's scorching 32*, lifted the defending champions to 200/6, a total 80 runs better than what the visitors could achieve.

"It's very important for us to show positive but correct intent. If we are 50/6 and I still go and tonk everything, that's positive, but that's not correct. Aggression does not mean tonking every ball for sixes," he told reporters in the post-match press conference.

"It's about how you understand the conditions and how you are able to maximize the conditions in your favour. And that is what aggression actually is. We don't want to be the team that scores 250 when we're playing well, and when we're not, we get out for 70. We want to be a team that understands the pitch and the conditions quickly. To assess the par score and try to make 20 runs above par," he added.

Despite putting up a competitive total on the board, Venkatesh acknowledged that they didn't feel too comfortable about it, especially