It is very easy to get swayed by the euphoria of Shardul Thakur’s innings and the spinners’ performances against Royal Challengers Bangalore at Eden Gardens on Thursday.
But underneath the glossy exhilaration of Kolkata Knight Riders’ maiden victory in IPL 2023 lies multiple bitter truths which the team management can’t just brush under the carpet. While their bowling looks settled, their top order, for the second match in a row, looked in poor shape and could have a ruinous effect in the long run.
While Jason Roy has been a welcome addition to the squad to strengthen their brittle batting, his place in the XI could complicate the Knights’ calculations while fielding four overseas players. The England opener has been among runs in the recent limited-overs series against Bangladesh and the Pakistan Super League and he is expected to provide stability at the top with Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
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That seals two overseas players’ slots and KKR can then pick only two from Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee and Lockie Ferguson, all considered key players. Moreover, Gurbaz is the only wicketkeeper of note in the squad besides the inexperienced Narayan Jagadeesan and Bangladesh’s Litton Das. If the consistent Gurbaz is rested, they might have to struggle to make up for his contributions at the start.
Playing two overseas openers will mean Southee and Ferguson may have to miss out but they have capable replacements in Shardul and Umesh. Ferguson’s wicket-taking abilities, however, could trigger a debate.
Head coach Chandrakant Pandit will face an enormous task when he chooses the team against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on Sunday. The failure of the Indian specialist batters has made his task complicated and unless Venkatesh Iyer or captain Nitish Rana shows the capability to shoulder the innings, the elation in the camp could be shortlived.
Rinku Singh did come up with a solid cameo during the record sixth-wicket stand with Shardul but KKR can’t depend solely on miracles to tide over the top-order crisis. A solid start will always make it easier for the likes of Shardul and Russell to launch into overdrive later.
KKR hugely depended on their India stars Shreyas Iyer and Shardul, but the former’s back injury has put the team in a fix. Thakur on Thursday vindicated their decision to trade him with Delhi Capitals as part of a Rs 10 crore deal.
Shreyas’ absence has exposed KKR’s batting fragility, as far as their domestic players are concerned. Venkatesh hasn’t been able to replicate his debut season form which earned him a national call-up, while Mandeep Singh has struggled to come to terms with express pace.
Rana needs to show leadership qualities and provide stability in the circumstances if he wants to do justice to the faith imposed on him by the team management. He blew away a good start in Mohali and lasted just five balls at Eden Gardens.
The captain was all praise for Rinku. “The innings Rinku played was as important as Shardul’s. He is a bindaas (cool) guy. If you keep things simple with him, he will play cricket in a simple way too. And that is our strength,” Rana said on Thursday.
Perhaps, this applies for all the Knights batters. For it’s not the time to revel in the glory of Thursday’s win, it’s time to plan for the road ahead.
