After poor returns in the first three seasons of the IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) decided to revamp the entire team in 2011 and brought in Gautam Gambhir who led the franchise really well and under his leadership, KKR won two titles (2012 and 2014) as well. In 2018, they went through another overhaul and Dinesh Karthik has been at helm for the last couple of years.
In 2018, they fought hard as they battled injuries and other issues and still made it to the playoffs but things didn’t really go their way in 2019. Thus, KKR released two players (Robin Uthappa and Piyush Chawla) who’ve been a key part of their setup for the last six seasons. However, they have roped in some great talent in the auction this time. The likes of Pat Cummins, Eoin Morgan and Tom Banton as international recruits while Rahul Tripathi and Varun Chakravarthy are the popular Indian talent that has come on board.
Kolkata Knight Riders Squad for IPL 2020
Dinesh Karthik (c & wk), Andre Russell, Harry Gurney, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Siddhesh Lad, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Eoin Morgan, Varun Chakravarthy, Tom Banton (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Chris Green, M Siddharth, Praveen Tambe, Nikhil Naik
Also Read: SWOT analysis of Royal Challengers Bangalore for IPL 2020 | Squad and Probable Playing XI
Strengths
Overseas firepower
Kolkata Knight Riders seem to have some quality overseas options. At least five of them will walk into most T20 starting XIs in the world and each one of them is a match-winner. Pat Cummins who became the second-costliest player in the history of the IPL auction this time is likely to lead the pace attack. Sunil Narine has become an all-round option and he can be destructive if he opens the batting. Everyone knows the firepower Eoin Morgan and Andre Russell bring to the table and now, KKR have the option of Tom Banton at the top of the order as well. They have a couple of excellent pacers as well in Lockie Ferguson and Harry Gurney. Hence, KKR will be spoilt for choice as far as overseas slots are considered.
Middle-order
KKR have a fiery and a solid middle-order core. Nitish Rana is likely to bat at 3 or 4 and has done well over the last couple of seasons. KKR then have the likes of Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik who form the core of the batting line-up. Morgan and Russell can smoke sixes at will. Everybody saw what the West Indian all-rounder is capable of last year. Morgan is an underrated player but can go big and has been consistently getting runs for England. Meanwhile, Karthik is a very good T20 player and has done well while donning the finisher’s role. Sunil Narine (if he doesn’t open) and Pat Cummins are players who can contribute pretty well with the bat.
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Weaknesses
Lack of quality and experienced Indian options and injury-prone pace attack
KKR don’t really have experienced Indian options, especially in the batting department. Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill and Rahul Tripathi are the only ones who have decent amount of IPL experience. The two-time champions have the likes of Rinku Singh, Siddesh Lad and Nikhil Naik as backup options and they have a combined experience of 13 IPL games between them.
Meanwhile, the pace attack boasts a solid look with Cummins, Ferguson, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi and Prasidh Krishna but it also looks pretty injury-prone. Nagarkoti has been in the squad for the last two seasons but injuries have prevented him from taking part. Mavi missed the entire 2019 season. Krishna has recently recovered from an injury while the overseas pacers have a tendency of breaking down as well.
Also Read: SWOT Analysis of Chennai Super Kings for IPL 2020 | Squad and Probable Playing XI
Key players
Shubman Gill: There was a time when Gill was wandering around in the middle order without a fixed batting position. But as soon as he was shifted to the top order, he produced results. He finished the 2019 season with 296 runs at an average of 32.88. The Punjab youngster has been in fine form and is likely to open the batting for KKR this year. Given KKR’s middle-order strength, Gill’s form at the top could well help them stamp their authority as a batting unit.
Andre Russell: There’s no doubt that Russell will be one of the most crucial players for KKR. He brings impeccable balance to the side and can turn the game on its head with both bat and ball. The Jamaican all-rounder has the ability to win games single-handedly with the bat from hopeless situations as well. He was their best player last season and will hope to replicate that once again.
Kuldeep Yadav: It was a dreadful season for Kuldeep Yadav last year. He picked up just four wickets and was eventually dropped. His form dipped alarmingly and it did affect KKR big time. The chinaman bowler will be the lead spinner for KKR and his form will be crucial to their chances.
Probable Playing XI
Sunil Narine, Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Eoin Morgan, Dinesh Karthik (C & wk), Andre Russell, Pat Cummins, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Shivam Mavi