Scheduled for Tuesday May 21 in Ahmedabad Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will confront SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the IPL 2024 Qualifier 1. Prior to the fixture Aakash Chopra highlighted several issues that could pose problems for Kolkata a twotime titleholder.
KKR attained the top position in the IPL 2024 points table garnering 20 points from 14 games. Regrettably they will now navigate the playoffs without Phil Salt their secondhighest runscorer who has departed for England for the T20I series against Pakistan.
Aakash Chopra stated in a YouTube video that Salt’s absence may be the most serious problem for KKR.
“There could be one problem for sure. This season, Phil Salt had a massive contribution in this team’s success. The starts he used to give with Sunil Narine suddenly put the opposing team on the back foot and they used to find it very difficult to emerge from that many times. However, Phil Salt isn’t there now.”
Aakash Chopra
However, he agreed that Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who may replace Salt at the top of the lineup, should be conversant with the circumstances at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
“Rahmanullah Gurbaz is there in place of him. The thing that goes in Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s favor is that he used to be a part of the Gujarat Titans at one point. So he has played earlier at this ground and on these pitches although he didn’t get too many chances when he was with Gujarat.”
Aakash Chopra
Chopra reassured Gurbaz that Ahmedabad wont be a challenge given his extensive practice on outside pitches. He quipped that the Afghanistan wicketkeeperbatter should feel right at home playing on subcontinental pitches.
“The second problem is that Shreyas Iyer hasn’t scored that many runs this year” – Aakash Chopra on KKR’s other concerns
Aakash Chopra has a gut feeling that Shreyas Iyer’s somewhat lackluster performances in IPL 2024 might become a cause for concern for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
“The second problem is that Shreyas Iyer hasn’t scored that many runs this year. He has played a slightly anchor-type role whereas all players around him come like rocket launchers. He even said that he has an anchor’s role this time. So he is anchoring but the season hasn’t been the way you expect it to be.”
Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator also mentioned Rinku Singh’s lack of runs and opportunities, as well as Mitchell Starc’s average performances, as potential sources of concern for KKR.
“However, despite that, his team has reached so far. The third problem is that Rinku Singh has neither scored many runs nor got many opportunities. Other than that, Mitchell Starc’s form has been 50-50.”
Aakash Chopra
Shreya’s steps up to bat having amassed 287 runs at an average of 31.89 in just 12 innings. Meanwhile Rinku with his daring play has managed an average of 18.67 while scoring 168 runs across 11 knocks. Starc the fierce bowler has snagged 12 wickets in 11 gripping innings but at the cost of conceding an average of 11.36 runs per over.