IPL 2018: Jacques Kallis backs KKR to finish among the top two

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have blown hot and cold in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). They have won four out of their eight matches and are currently placed in the fourth position on the points table. While their victories have been resounding, the franchise has slumped to some heavy drubbings, that has impacted their net run rate to a significant extent.

They still have seven games remaining and need to win quite a few of them to secure a berth in the playoffs. However, finishing among the top two means that the team has a couple of chances to qualify for the final. Jacques Kallis, the head coach of KKR, hasn’t ruled out their chances of finishing among the top two while highlighting the significance of their game against Chennai Super Kings.

Time to start pushing

“It is always a huge game against Chennai. MS [Dhoni] has been grabbing the headlines on a regular basis but the team is so much more than him. A top-two finish is still our priority but the old cliché is truer than ever – one game at a time. But there is no need to keep anything in the tank now – it’s time to start pushing with everything we have,” Kallis wrote in his column for the Times of India (TOI).

The Knights have been marred by injury concerns and that started even before the commencement of the tournament. They lost Mitchell Starc, which has proved to be a body blow for them. Moreover, they lost Kamlesh Nagarkoti and recently, Nitish Rana who has been in stupendous form batting in the middle order. Rana suffered a back spasm and is yet to recover from it. However, Kallis doesn’t want to drool over the issues and wants to move ahead.

“We have injury concerns but so do most other teams. The moment you start regretting the loss of players, or start making excuses, is the moment you run the risk of losing the plot. Everybody has to get on with it – injuries are a test of the contingency plans you have put in place,” he added.

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