David Hussey, the mentor of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) feels that aggressive West Indian all-rounder — Andre Russell could well bat at number three position for KKR in the upcoming IPL 2020, the schedule for which was announced on Sunday by BCCI. The franchise headed by coach Brendon McCullum and mentor David Hussey are thinking about the idea of promoting Andre Russell up the order to make maximum use of the all-rounder’s big-hitting skills.
KKR were winners of IPL twice in 2012 and 2014 under Gautam Gambhir but Dinesh Karthik is the current skipper since 2018. Eoin Morgan who played for KKR previously in 2011-2013 was bought along with Australian pacer Pat Cummins in IPL auction.
David Hussey: Andre Russell Can Score Double Hundred In IPL
David Hussey said with an adequate number of balls at his conveyance, Andre Russell can well go on to score a double hundred in T20 cricket which nobody has ever achieved.
“If it benefits the team and helps us win games of cricket, why not? If that means Andre Russell comes in at three and bats 60 balls, he might actually make a double hundred. Anything can happen with Dre Russ,” Hussey said in a news conference.
Last year, Andre Russell scored 510 runs from 13 innings, averaging 56.66 and also picked up 11 wickets. But his strike rate was extraordinary 204.81 last year which is quite unthinkable of. The former Australian cricketer David Hussey termed him as heartbeat and commented:
“A fantastic player, he is probably almost the heartbeat of the team as well. “We’ve actually got really a well-balanced team… Anyone can bat in any different position. But if it benefits the team, why not, why can’t he bat up the list,” he added.
Andre Russell has so far scored exactly 1400 runs from 64 matches averaging 33.33 with an extraordinary strike rate of 186.41. He has also taken 55 wickets averaging 27.96.
KKR have an all-new coaching set-up in former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum as head coach, Australian David Hussey as a mentor and New Zealander Kyle Mills as the bowling coach. Under Brendon McCullum, KKR will look for various combinations in the batting order that can take on the bowlers, David Hussey said.
“Anyone who knows Brendon McCullum is aware that he plays the game at 100 miles per hour, and he tries to encourage the players to take the game on. So we’ve got players who can take the game on, players who can fit in the anchor role,” he explained.
KKR have the best batting line-up with the likes of Eoin Morgan, Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Tom Banton, Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik. Their pace bowling line up includes Lockie Ferguson and Pat Cummins along with a talented bunch of Indian pacers like Shivam Mavi, Prasidh Krishna, Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Sandeep Warrier. Their spin attack consists of Sunil Narine, Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakraborty.
David Hussey Praises Eoin Morgan For Calmness:
Eoin Morgan will be seen as Dinesh Karthik’s deputy and David Hussey hoped that England’s 2019 World Cup-winning skipper proves to be good support as he is known for keeping his head cool in pressured situations.
“He is a huge name, World Cup-winning captain, captain of England for a long time, classy player, classy performer. “He is also going to be a great ally for Dinesh Karthik, maybe fielding in the ring and talking to the bowlers with our captain behind the stumps,” he said about Morgan.
“He is a very cool, calm and collected person. I do expect them to both have a really good relationship on and off the field and I think it’s going to go a long way to having a cool and calm head to winning many games during a very tight tournament,” he concluded.
KKR will start their campaign against defending champions Mumbai Indians in Abu Dhabi on September 23.