IPL playerIndia2021 to 2026
Venkatesh Iyer
On scorecards: VR Iyer · Right-hand bat
Venkatesh Iyer, a batter, has played six IPL seasons for two franchises. Two titles came along the way.
The arrival
Venkatesh Iyer arrived through the auction: Kolkata Knight Riders paid ₹20 lakh, the base price.
That first season brought 10 matches, 370 runs and 3 wickets.
The peak
The high point with the bat was 2023, for Kolkata Knight Riders: 404 runs at an average of 28.9, striking at 145.8 in a season when the league as a whole struck at 141.9, with 1 hundred and 2 fifties, and a highest score of 104.
Measured against the league around it, though, the most destructive season was 2026: 209 runs at a strike rate of 186.6, 30 runs per hundred balls quicker than the IPL as a whole that year.
Franchise by franchise
2021 to 2025, Kolkata Knight Riders. Bought at the 2021 auction for ₹20 lakh. 61 matches, 1,468 runs and 3 wickets; champions in 2024.
2026, Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Bought at the 2026 auction for ₹7 cr. 7 matches and 209 runs; champions in 2026.
2 spells with two franchises in all. The longest was with Kolkata Knight Riders, 2021 to 2025.
How the runs came
Across the career, Venkatesh Iyer has struck at 142.0. The league around those same seasons, weighted by how much batting each one involved, struck at 141.2, so the scoring rate has tracked the league's almost exactly. 65% of the runs came in fours and sixes: 157 fours and 78 sixes.
The ball-by-ball record adds the detail. 37.9% of the balls Venkatesh Iyer faced were dot balls, a higher share than 71% of the 140 batters who have faced 500 balls or more in the IPL. A six came every 15.1 balls, and a four every 7.5.
The fielding record: 23 catches and 3 run-outs.
At the auction
Venkatesh Iyer has gone under the hammer three times. The highest price was ₹23.75 cr, paid by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2025, more than 11 times the base price. The price climbed with the reputation: ₹20 lakh in 2021, ₹7 cr by 2026.
Seasons without an auction entry were played under a retention, a trade or a signing made outside the auction.
Where it stands
Venkatesh Iyer has made 68 IPL appearances, the latest for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2026, and has won 4 player-of-the-match awards.
Season by season
| Season | Team | M | Runs | HS | Avg | SR | 50/100 | Wkts | Econ | Best | Ct | POTM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 10 | 370 | 67 | 41.1 | 128.5 | 4/0 | 3 | 7.96 | 2/29 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2022 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 12 | 182 | 50* | 16.5 | 107.7 | 1/0 | 0 | 11.50 | - | 4 | ||
| 2023 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 14 | 404 | 104 | 28.9 | 145.8 | 2/1 | – | – | – | 3 | 1 | |
| 2024 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 14 | 370 | 70 | 46.3 | 158.8 | 4/0 | 0 | 28.00 | - | 4 | 1 | Champions |
| 2025 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 11 | 142 | 60 | 20.3 | 139.2 | 1/0 | – | – | – | 4 | ||
| 2026 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 7 | 209 | 73* | 52.3 | 186.6 | 1/0 | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | Champions |
Franchise journey
- Kolkata Knight Riders: 2021 to 2025
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru: 2026
Ball-by-ball detail
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Dot balls faced | 37.9% |
| Balls per four | 7.5 |
| Balls per six | 15.1 |
| Dot balls bowled | 18.5% |
| Balls per wicket | 27 |
| Catches | 23 |
| Run-outs | 3 |
| Stumpings | 0 |
At the auction
| Auction | Set | Base price | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | UAL2 | ₹20 lakh | Sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for ₹20 lakh |
| 2025 | AL1 | ₹2 cr | Sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for ₹23.75 cr |
| 2026 | AL1 | ₹2 cr | Sold to Royal Challengers Bengaluru for ₹7 cr |
Sources
- CricArcade IPL season statistics
- CricArcade IPL auction archive
- Kaggle IPL Complete Match Dataset 2008-2026, ball-by-ball, cross-checked against Cricsheet