IPL 2018 | Is KKR batting rubbish or there is method to madness?

Gone are the days when IPL teams boasted of big names on their roster that was supposed to serve both the purposes - pull the crowd to the venues and win matches as well. After 10 years of IPL, most teams today have understood the intrinsic value of T20 specialists and experience in a squad over big names, which is reflected in their buys at recent auctions.

It was Rajasthan Royals, the first champions of the trophy, who were the first to execute it to perfection, and others wasted no time in learning the art. While sides like Kings XI Punjab, Delhi Daredevils, and Royal Challengers Bangalore (all three yet to win the championship) still look to resort to the initial formula this year too, KKR’s widely regarded depleting squad this season could actually be an impressive study.

Almost every analyst has shot down KKR’s chances in this season’s IPL with their biggest argument being their shallow batting depth. Categorically divide KKR’s spending at the mega-auction and it is crystal clear that the management didn’t have batting as their first priority while engineering their master plan. 

The Knight Riders spent 12.6 crores and brought only five batsmen, which is negligible if compared to the whopping 34.9 crores they shelled out to get six bowlers. They have also spent 18.7 crores to get six all-rounders and 13.8 crores in buying two wicketkeepers - which are all costlier than their batting order, something other franchises view as their strongest suit.

Their minimum allocation towards the batting unit could point towards two things - either the management plans to win matches with bowlers and has little regard for the batting strength or they are showing extreme faith in the chosen few. KKR fans would certainly hope that it is the latter and given the top five batsmen KKR see in their starting eleven, they project experience and consistency.

Chris Lynn is inarguably one of the best openers in the IPL after his heroics last season, despite missing many games with a shoulder injury. In only seven games, the explosive Australian opener scored 384 runs at an average of 38.40. He has played just eight T20s this year, garnering 216 runs with a strike rate of 147.94 and an average of 36. And quite interestingly, his strike rate (148.35) and average (36.12) have never dropped in the last eight years that he has been on the international circuit. KKR shelling out 9.6 crores for him is well thought of and if and when he is fit, he is almost always bankable unlike the hot-cold likes of Aaron Finch, Brendon McCullum or Chris Gayle.

Lynn’s opening partner would be Sunil Narine in all expectancy. And it is not because the Windies star is a better opener than Robin Uthappa or even Shubman Gill for that matter, but he could be one of KKR’s best bets in exploiting the six power-play overs. Neither does Narine have a variety of shots up his sleeve, nor does he boast of brute strength like most of his compatriots like Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Lendl Simmons or Marlon Samuels but he relies mainly on timing and an offensive approach, which has evidently suited whichever teams he has played for. 

While many saw him as a brilliant discovery in the opening slot last season, it was not a shot in the dark by KKR at all. The 2017 Pakistan Super League season had seen Narine smashing 11 sixes in eight matches and finishing the tournament with the second-highest strike rate of 181.25. Though he didn’t see similar success with his bat this season, the Caribbean star still managed to amass 214 runs at a strike rate of 164.62. Hence, though the part-time batsman doesn’t fit in KKR’s artillery of consistent run-getters, he is definitely a good choice.

Coming at No. 3 and 4 are Robin Uthappa and Dinesh Karthik, and they would probably be handed a massive responsibility throughout the season. KKR committed a grave mistake by letting Gautam Gambhir go, but what many fans don’t understand is that Karthik is not Gambhir’s direct replacement in the squad - neither as a batsman nor as a skipper. The nimble-handed, yet sturdy Gambhir had a successful stint as KKR captain and Karthik will have his own style to impose. 

Uthappa, on the other hand, has failed to replicate his 2014 IPL display when he ended up as the orange cap winner. However, one also has had to see that his batting position has continuously been experimented since then, leaving him the task of adapting repeatedly. Now, with players like Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan and Suryakumar Yadav gone from the side, Uthappa could actually get the liberty to express himself.

The technically rich veterans possess the ability to come in at any stage of the game and dictate the tempo of the run rate and this season, they just don’t have the option to fail in their task. Both Karthik and Uthappa have 37 fifties between them in IPL and will act as KKR’s spine.

It is after them that KKR face their biggest void. The mega-auction saw the side trimming down their squad from 24 to 19 for reasons only known to them, and their batting line-up has taken the biggest hit. Batsmen coming at fifth and sixth would probably be the decider for KKR this season. KKR had to replace Pathan and Suryakumar Yadav after their dismal displays last season, and they gambled big time with the likes of Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill or Ishank Jaggi.

Bought last year, Jaggi only got chances in bits and pieces and was quite understandably not at his best. However, the 29-year-old has been promising in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy where he scored 213 runs in four matches at a strike rate of 167.71, and Jaques Kallis just might hand him the chance he deserves. 

Among the three U-19 starlets that KKR invested in, 18-year-old Gill could be the brightest given his mature stroke play that was exhibited in New Zealand. Just because he opened for Rahul Dravid’s side doesn’t necessarily make him a top-order batsman at the highest level in IPL. Kallis could actually mold him into a good middle-order batsman given his rich technique. Either Gill or Jaggi would take the fifth position and KKR better hope they come up as expected.

Though Jaggi/ Gill and Nitish Rana are promising prospects, their ability to perform under pressure is highly skeptical. Though Rana has burst onto the scene only last year, KKR have previously managed to do well with the relatively unknown likes of Manvinder Bisla, Manish Pandey, Rajat Bhatia, Jaydev Undadkat and more in their squad. Hence, it won’t be surprising, if we see Jaggi, Rana or even Gill come up with a sumptuous knock at crucial junctures.

While Andre Russell’s batting position would vary according to the situation of the game, he would pretty much be KKR’s last concrete hope in the batting order. The Windies player was out of the game for long and has only returned recently before suffering a hamstring injury yet again. However, with Venky Mysore assuring that he would shake it off to start KKR’s opener on April 8 against Royal Challengers Bangalore, we expect the pinch hitter to be involved more as a batsman in the first few games.

Yes, KKR’s batting has no flesh with their bench non-existent, to say the least. However, given the strong and in-depth bowling options that are available with the side, if all the first six batsmen manage to stay fit for a major chunk of the season, there is every chance that the two-time IPL champions would stun the star-studded sides once again.