IPL 2019: Kolkata Knight Riders is Over-Dependent on Andre Russell – Kris Srikkanth
Apr 14, 2019 at 3:38 PM
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Andre Russell has been in scintillating form in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. He has scored six consecutive 40+ scores and has kept the KKR bus going in this tournament. However, the recent loss against Delhi Capitals has raised questions on their batting and former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth feels Kolkata is over-dependent on the Windies cricketer.
Despite the defeat against Delhi, Kolkata Knight Riders find themselves in the second spot with eight points from seven games. Dinesh Karthik made a solid start with two back to back wins but lost track since then. Kris Srikkanth pointed out the over-dependence on Andre Russell is not a good sign which is growing with each passing game. The franchise based in Kolkata needs to overcome that to stay in the competition.
“Kolkata seem to have lost their way a bit after a promising start. The dependence on Andre Russell is growing by the day and that’s not a good sign,” Srikkanth wrote in TOI.
Kolkata Knight Riders have made too many chopping and changing in their playing XI in these seven games so far. This has had an adverse effect, and Kris Srikkanth feels too many changes in the batting order affects the stability of the team. He also said that team who have won tournaments in the previous editions had made very few changes throughout the tournament.
“Too many changes, especially in the batting order does not augur well. By now KKR must have sorted out their combination. If you look back, IPL champions in the past are usually the ones who have not tinkered too much with their XI. Same goes with any high-profile tournament,” he added.
In conclusion, Kris Srikkanth said that this Kolkata Knight Riders team might qualify for the playoff stages, but they have lost their performance from the start. Meanwhile, the tournament is still in its mid-stages, and it will witness many more ups and down in the points table.
“For KKR, another defeat here would mean they slip in the points table. They might still make the playoffs but they don’t look the side they were at the start of the tournament,” he concluded.
Kolkata Knight Riders take on defending champions Chennai Super Kings next later today at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.