On Sunday, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) achieved an extraordinary win against the defending champions Gujarat Titans, which will be remembered as one of their most remarkable victories in the Indian Premier League history.
The left-handed batter Rinku Singh was the hero of the match, as he scored an unbeaten 48 runs off just 21 balls in the three-wicket win. However, the match seemed to be slipping away from KKR’s grasp when they required 28 runs off the last five balls. Nonetheless, Singh smashed five consecutive sixes to secure a famous victory for his team.
Despite this impressive win, KKR still have some room for improvement in their performances. They are currently placed third on the points table with two wins in three games and a net run rate of +1.375. While this is a positive start for a team that was considered weaker than others before the tournament, they need to keep working hard to maintain their position in the tournament.
1) Prevent early wicket losses
KKR’s opening partnerships in the ongoing IPL season have not been consistent, with scores of 13, 26 and 30 in the first three matches. Moreover, they have tried different opening partners for Rahmanullah Gurbaz in each match – Mandeep Singh, Venkatesh Iyer and Narayan Jagadeeshan.
If KKR can manage to establish a stable and productive opening partnership, it could take off some pressure from the middle and lower order, which would be beneficial for the team’s overall performance. Fortunately, KKR has a talented squad, and they have the ability to perform better.
To strengthen their squad, KKR has signed Jason Roy, an experienced opener, which could prove to be a valuable addition. However, it remains to be seen whether the management will select him as the fourth overseas player after Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, and Rahmanullah Gurbaz. If so, KKR will need to play one less overseas pacer, which could have an impact on their overall bowling performance.
2) Veteran players need to be consistent
Although Andre Russell was the most valuable player for KKR in IPL 2022, he has not had an ideal start to the current season. He has scored 35, 0, and 1 in three innings and has not bowled a single over. In comparison, last season, he scored 335 runs at a strike rate of 174.48 and took 17 wickets at an average of 16.35, demonstrating his immense value to the team.
On the other hand, Nitish Rana has been a consistent performer for the Knight Riders and has been appointed as the skipper in the absence of Shreyas Iyer. Rana has played a couple of vital cameos so far, scoring 24 off 17 balls against Punjab and 45 off 29 balls against Gujarat. However, as the captain of the team, he is expected to play an anchor role and bat till the end of the innings.
3) Fast bowlers need to do much better
KKR has a decent pace bowling unit on their roster, including Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, and Shardul Thakur. While each of these pacers has shown promise in specific roles, their performances have been inconsistent in the high-variance format of the IPL. Unfortunately, KKR’s pace attack has been the weakest in the tournament, taking only four wickets in 28 overs at an average of 72.50, which is the worst among all teams, and with an economy rate of 10.36, which is the second-worst.
In contrast, KKR’s spin bowling has been impressive in the early stages of the tournament. The team’s spinners have picked up 11 wickets at an average of 14.82 and an economy rate of 7.52. While this is a promising start, it is unlikely to be sustainable throughout the season if KKR aims to perform consistently and win matches.
