This year the franchise owners are trying to bring things to order. And they certainly seem to have started on the right note. For starters, they have selected their captain (Ganguly), and so far look intent upon sticking to him. Rather than going for the players who won’t be available for the entire season, they have picked up players who will play maximum matches. Let’s have a look at the team to see how it looks like.
Batting
Saurav Ganguly is back as the captain, and it looks as if he will open. And there was news a couple of days back that Bard Hodge will be the other opener. But that would mean either bringing Chris Gayle down the order or not picking him up in the playing eleven; which would be a folly either way. Because Gayle is a huge asset to any side and if you pick him then you have got to play him at the top. And Ganguly was never the quickest of runners during his heydays, so it would be a mistake to assume that he would have improved after being away from competitive cricket for so long. So this means that he should bat only at the top of the order. This means that Brad Hodge has to come down the order. Omitting him from the side will be a mistake since he’s been their best batsman so far. The middle order will comprise of Cheteshwar Pujara, Manoj Tiwari, and Harshad Khadiwale. Pujara has been the run machine in Indian domestic scene but has rarely got a chance to show his talent at the highest level. And while T20 may not showcase his entire talent, but atleast he can convince everyone that he can stand against the best in the business. Manoj Tiwary is another talented batsman who’s yet to prove his potential on the big stage. Harshad Khadivale has shown glimpses of talent but has failed to come up with anything spectacular. Kolkata might try out Rohan Gavaskar instead of Harshad if they feel that he is not up to the mark. Next up will be Laxmi Ratan Shukla who may not have set the league on fire with his performances but nevertheless has been one of the more consistent performers from the side. Saha will be the wicketkeeper and while he may not be in the league of Gilcrist or Dhoni, he still has a lot of gumption. The biggest problem for Kolkata is the lack of Indian talent. Even apart from Gayle and Hodge, they have got other batsman like Owais Shah, Brendon McCullum, and Angelo Matthews, but they do not have a single Indian batsman who is currently playing for the Indian team or even someone who is in the reckoning for the job. This means that they will have to play with 3 foreign batsmen. So McCullum may play, but he isn’t coming till very late. Gayle will join the team after 2-3 matches. That leaves the entire responsibility upon the shoulders of Hodge, Matthews, and Owais Shah. And in such a high voltage competition, a great start is vital to any team.
Bowling
Kolkata have picked up Shane Bond as their strike bowler. And while he may not be as lethal as Umar Gul, he is nevertheless an effective operator. In all probability, he will be partnered by Ishant Sharma. Sharma’s form has been up and down after a great start to his career. But he seems to be recovering his confidence now and a good performance here will certainly be beneficial not only for him but also for team India. The other two candidates for the opening bowler’s slot are Agarkar and Ashok Dinda. Agarkar is an aging war horse and has not been able to perform too well in the shortest format of the game. Dinda, on the hand, has been bowling well and has been impressive in this format. The spin department will be handled by Murali Karthik, Iqbal Abdulla, and Ajantha Mendis. Karthik was under bowled last season, and Ajantha Mendis wasn’t in the best of forms. Both will be hoping to match up to their rival spinners this year. But the man to watch out for is Abdulla. The 20-year-old is being touted as the next best thing in Indian cricket. He’s shown the talent, both with the bat and the bowl, but whether he shows it at this level remains to be seen. He is reputed to be a smart cricketer and has a good economy rate in T20 cricket, asides from a five wicket haul; a rarity for a spinner in T20. Another talent to watch out for is Varun Aaron. Though the twenty year old has hardly played any first class cricket, he’s already created a buzz in the KKR camp having impressed Ganguly and Wasim Akram. These frontline bowlers will have the support of Shukla, Matthews, and Ganguly; all of whom are steady medium pacers who can apply the brakes in the middle overs, and pick up vital wickets. Chris Gayle ofcourse will provide the extra spinning option with his off spin. Once again the problem here for KKR is that since they will be playing three foreign batsmen, they can only pick up one bowler out of Bond, Charle Langeveldt, and Mendis. While the loss of Mendis may not hurt them too much, the loss of Langeveldt may. He’s a good bowler in the death overs and the only game that he has played for KKR so far, he’s bowled them to victory. So eventually they will have to figure out as to how they will fit him in the team.
Fielding
Fielding has been a major worry for KKR over the last two seasons; and it doesn’t look as if it will change now. The amount of runs that they have given away due to shoddy fielding – both misfields and dropped catches – must be more than the runs a few of their batsman have made. Another problem is that there’s no backup for Saha. If he should get injured before McCullum returns, then Kolkata will be in a real fix. Overall, despite all the efforts put in by the franchise, KKR still seems to have come up short in this department.
Final Verdict
Despite all the changes in the players and support staff brought about by SRK, it seems as if KKR might fail to qualify for the semis. At the risk of sounding repetitive, the lack of top level Indian batsman may end up hurting the team. There are a lot of promising young players in the team, but no one who has fulfilled his promise. So KKR may finish up higher this season, but they certainly do not look championship material. The only silver lining for them is that they have got a captain who has been in a similar position where his team has been written off only to emerge as victors. But that’s a very slim hope to cling on to.
Kolkata Knight Riders’ squad
Saurav Ganguly | Iqbal Abdulla | Charles Langeveldt |
Chris Gayle | Ishant Sharma | Varun Aaron |
Cheteshwar Pujara | Shane Bond | Rohan Gavaskar |
Brad Hodge | Brendon McCullum | Eklak Ahmed |
Manoj Tiwary | Ashok Dinda | Chirag Pathak |
Angelo Matthews | Ajit Agarkar | Owais Shah |
Laxmi Ratan Shukla | Ajantha Mendis | Ganapathi Vignesh |
Wriddhiman Saha | Murali Karthik |
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