Kolkata Knight Riders in action during IPL 2023© BCCI
Former Indian cricket team opener Aakash Chopra was not impressed with how Andre Russell has performed for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. Russell had a good start in the first match against Punjab Kings but in the next two games, he has failed to score much with Rashid Khan dismissing him cheaply in the last match against Gujarat Titans. Ahead of KKR’s game against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Chopra said that players like Rinku Singh and skipper Nitish Rana have stepped up but Russell’s form remains a major concern for the Kolkata side.
“Kolkata is a team on a roll. It seems they are a team with problems. Andre Russell’s bat hasn’t spoken at all till now. It looks like something is lacking in batting but Rinku Singh comes one day, Venkatesh Iyer comes another day, and now Nitish Rana has also scored runs,” said Chopra.
Both Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer found their form against GT in the last game with Rinku stunning everyone with five sixes in five balls to clinch a sensational win for the side.
Chopra was all praise for the batting unit in general and tried to guess how they will line up against SRH.
“Venky Iyer has batted well, played very well in two games. His batting order has been moved slightly up and down. He might continue to bat at No. 3, could open, or get pushed to No. 4. If Russell scores runs, the team’s stature will suddenly grow even further,” he added.
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