Andre Russell doesn’t have any complaints: KKR captain Dinesh Karthik

Things aren’t just falling into place for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in this edition’s Indian Premier League (IPL). Yesterday, the team, captained by Dinesh Karthik, slumped to a nine-wicket defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the RGI Stadium in Hyderabad. Currently placed sixth on the points table, the Knight Riders are in a must-win position for the remainder of the games.

Meanwhile, there has been a debate doing the rounds on Andre Russell’s batting position. After KKR’s 10-run defeat against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Bengaluru, the Jamaican said called for some flexibility in the batting order and also showed his keenness to bat at number four. In that game, Russell hammered 65 off 25 balls with two fours and nine over-boundaries.

Yesterday, the hulk-like batsman came to bat at number seven and smashed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for a couple of powerful sixes before perishing to the same bowler after scoring 15 off nine balls. In the meantime, Karthik also talked about the 30-year-old and iterated his role in the batting lineup. Moreover, he mentioned that Russell has absolutely no complaints from the batting point of view.

I think he’s been happy, says Karthik

“He had about five overs to face. When he came in, there were 27 balls and we’re looking to play him at a kind of slot where…I think he’s the kind of player even if he had played 10 balls, he’d have made an impact. The key is that we play that well at the top of the order that we set it up for him,” Karthik was quoted as saying in the post-match press conference.

“There’s been no complaints from his side about the batting part of it. I think he’s been happy with the place where he’s going and he has a clear role in the team which he’s trying to achieve every time he goes out to bat,” the KKR captain added.

Russell is currently the leading run-scorer for the Knights with 392 runs at an average of 65.33 with three half-centuries. Unfortunately, all three of his fifties came in losing causes. Most astonishingly, he has plundered 41 sixes and that shows the power the big man possesses.

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