KKR IPL 2023 Preview: Kolkata Knight Riders have been Indian Premier League (IPL) champions twice, in 2012 and 2014, but their journey through the 15 years has largely been inconsistent. There are four exits in the playoffs, three runs to the final (winning two) and eight league stage exits.
One of those league stage showings came last year when they finished seventh out of 10 teams in the competition. Three wins out of four matches to start IPL 2022 was met with five straight defeats to all but shatter their qualification chances. Desperately needing a winning run in their remaining matches, KKR won three of next five matches but couldn’t progress.
IPL Facts: Get to know Kolkata Knight Riders
Coming into IPL 2023, KKR were dealt a massive blow with skipper Shreyas Iyer ruled out – at least for the start – and Nitish Rana taking over as the captain.
Coach Chandrakant Pandit, who has led Vidarbha and Madhya Pradesh to Ranji Trophy titles, tried to take the blow in his stride.
“Whatever little cricket I have played or coached, I have never gone back over things like squad unavailability. Shreyas’ absence will make a difference since he is important, but this is truly unfortunate,” he said.
“We are hoping Shreyas will be back very soon and that will make a lot of difference to the team,” Pandit added.
Rana is an able leader and not new to the KKR setup. He’s been with the Shah Rukh Khan-led team for five seasons now and is a smart choice for the leadership role.
“When we select players and give responsibility to players, we see who is capable. And Nitish is capable. He has been with KKR for a long time and also has a strong domestic record. Like they say, ‘all boxes to be ticked’ and it has come down to that,” said Pandit on Rana.
“I am comfortable knowing he can handle the role. We don’t see whether someone is deserving or not. Every player has different skills, and after thinking about what Nitish brings to the table, we are confident with the decision,” he went on to add.
For Rana, things will be made easier working alongside Pandit and assistant coach Abhishek Nayyar. A strong lineup of all-rounders such as Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, David Weise, Venkatesh Iyer and Shakib Al Hasan boost their chances.
Iyer, star of IPL 2021 and a big reason they reached the final, would be hoping to turn things around after a dreadful campaign last season where he scored a solitary fifty.
For KKR, the opener against Punjab Kings, will be a further challenge due to the absence of Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and Litton Das. Bangladesh are currently hosting Ireland and the series is due to conclude with a one-off Test on 8 April.
Another absentee could be Lockie Ferguson, who picked up a hamstring issue but travelled alongside his New Zealand teammate Tim Southee this week.
The presence of pace bowling options in Umesh Yadav, Southee, Ferguson Russell, Shardul Thakur bodes well for KKR by bringing in serious pace and experience.
But KKR’s problems over the years have been in lacking consistency – as evident in their results through the 15 seasons. Many a times, they’ve put their faith in Andre Russell to get them out of a fix. When that hasn’t worked out, KKR have faltered too.
Once again, KKR don’t have a finisher except for Russell which isn’t a wise squad selection for a format such as this. It leaves the possibility of the middle order being exposed and creates pressure on the top order to stick around for a long. Time for Iyer and Rinku Singh to step up and take over!
KKR squad
Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Anukul Roy, Rinku Singh, N. Jagadeesan, Vaibhav Arora, Suyash Sharma, David Wiese, Kulwant Khejroliya, Litton Das, Mandeep Singh, Shakib Al Hasan.
KKR schedule
Match 1: April 1 – Punjab Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Mohali (3:30PM IST)
Match 2: April 6 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
Match 3: April 9 – Gujarat Titans vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Ahmedabad (3:30PM IST)
Match 4: April 14 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
Match 5: April 16 – Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai (3:30PM IST)
Match 6: April 20 – Delhi Capitals vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi (7:30PM IST)
Match 7: April 23 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
Match 8: April 26 – Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Bengaluru (7:30PM IST)
Match 9: April 29 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Gujarat Titans, Kolkata (3:30PM IST)
Match 10: May 4 – Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Hyderabad (7:30PM IST)
Match 11: May 8 – Kolkata Knight RIders vs Punjab Kings, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
Match 12: May 11 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
Match 13: May 14 – Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai (7:30PM IST)
Match 14: May 20 – Kolkata Knight Riders vs Lucknow Super Giants, Kolkata (7:30PM IST)
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