'Lack of clarity within the team's batting order' - Mohammad Kaif on KKR after loss against GT

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have consistently employed the tactic of maintaining a left-right batting combination at the crease. This strategy, which aims to disrupt the bowlers’ rhythm, was notably implemented by Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir during his tenure as KKR's mentor last season.

However, former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif has expressed concerns over the effectiveness of this approach in the current season. The Allahabad-born cricketer believes the tactic has not been executed well and seems to have fallen apart.

The right-handed batter emphasized the need for the team to identify and stick to their core players. The 44-year-old pointed out the surprising decision to send Rinku Singh, one of KKR's key finishers last season, to bat at No. 8 against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). According to the all-rounder, this move shows a lack of clarity within the team's batting order, and urged the management to define and assign roles to their batters more clearly.

"There is an old saying that lefty-right has to be at the crease. Today, KKR tried to maintain that, and in the process, their main player was not sent up the order. But you must first decide who your main player is in this KKR team. Is it Rinku or Russell or Iyer or Moeen Ali? Who is it, and what are the roles? And because of this left-right thing, any batter is coming in at any batting position. Rinku was batting at No. 8 against Lucknow, all because of the left-right thing for which he was sent so late, although KKR lost the match by just four runs. But he barely got any deliveries to face. But this thing is not working for KKR," Kaif said on social media.

Also read: IPL 2025: Aaron Finch, Cheteshwar Pujara question KKR's lack of intent during run-chase against GT

The veteran cricketer suggested that KKR should bring their big hitters earlier into the innings, rather than repeating the cautious approach taken by Ajinkya Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer against the Gujarat Titans (GT). He felt that the team missed an opportunity by not continuing with Quinton de Kock, indicating that the left-right combination tactic was not a priority in that situation.

"I feel, in case of big chases, they should just send their big hitters early and tell them to play their natural game. They might get all out for a low score even, but they played so slowly yesterday in the middle overs during the partnership between Iyer and Rahane, and Narine struggled to score. Also, I feel that KKR should have stuck with De Kock, who won the Player of the Match award against the Rajasthan Royals. Again, why was De Kock dropped? Because they wanted a right-handed batter. Lefty-righty ke chakkar mein naiya dub gayi KKR ki (Their left-right plan fell apart). This is not the first time. They did it against Lucknow, and now they lost badly against Gujarat," he added.