I request KKR with folded hands to send Rinku Singh up the order: Aakash Chopra

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) suffered a loss in a high-scoring thriller against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Former India opener and pundit Aakash Chopra criticised the defending champion’s batting line-up during the match as the Knight Riders fell short of the target by just four runs at the end of the game.

KKR, who won their third title in 2024, have had a mixed start to the 2025 season. In the five games they have played, they have accumulated a couple of wins, but have also lost three so far. While it is the bowling department that got most of the flak from the experts, the cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra aired out criticism towards the batting, where he mentioned he was unimpressed with star batter Rinku Singh coming down the order after Ramandeep Singh.

"Ramandeep came up the order. Raghuvanshi came up the order, and Rinku was sent down the order. I am still unable to understand this team's batting order. Even if you are seeing five or seven balls, you are doing wrong there as well," he said on his YouTube channel.

“I request with folded hands that you should send Rinku Singh slightly up the order. Mandatorily needing a left-right combination does not work out all the time. If Harshit Rana had given him the strike in the end, you wouldn't have lost by four runs. The run chase would have happened," Chopra, who represented KKR in 2008, added.

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Speaking of the defending champions' upcoming game, they will be heading to the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai to square off against CSK on April 11. This will be another test for the Ajinkya Rahane-led side, who will be up against their long time rivals. Rahane will also be up against his former team for the first this season and will look to make a great impression against Yellow Brigade.