INDvsNZ T20I Series: Debutant Venkatesh Iyer 'ready' to bat at any position

The 26-year-old cricketer opened the batting for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the UAE leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

"Everyone who plays cricket aspires to play for the country, so I feel good that I've been presented with this opportunity. Feels good to play under Rahul (Dravid) sir, I'm really excited and looking forward to it," Venkatesh told hosts broadcasters Star Sports before the match. "As a cricketer, you got to be flexible, and I'll look to capitalise on the role I've been given. I'm ready to bat at any position, or bowl whenever I've been asked to. It's wonderful to play in front of the (Indian) crowd, it's great to have them back," he added.

Venkatesh Iyer was handed his cap by India skipper Rohit Sharma ahead of the toss. India won the toss and opted to bowl first against New Zealand in the first T20I here at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. India got off to a great start as Bhuvneshwar Kumar dismissed Daryl Mitchell in the very first over the match.

India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma(c), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Mohammed Siraj