IPL 2019: Andre Russell’s commercial scorecard is a jaw-dropping one

Russell started his IPL career in 2012 playing for Delhi Daredevils, now Capitals.

Published - 06 Apr 2019, 19:17 IST | Updated - 06 Apr 2019, 19:17 IST

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There’s absolutely no doubt that Andre Russell doesn’t have the word ‘mercy’ in his books, especially when he is plying his trade with the willow in hand. He is currently playing in the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), representing the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and has already won three Player of the Match award, having racked up 207 runs at an incredible average of 103.50.

Moreover, he has scored those runs at a gigantic strike-rate of 268.83. And the most astonishing part of the knocks is that they came under immense pressure when the opposition exerted serious pressure on the Knight Riders (KKR). At first, the Jamaican churned out with a knock of 49 not out to take his team over the line against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Then he played another whirlwind knock of 48 against Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) at the same venue. Thereafter the 30-year-old played with an injured shoulder against Delhi Capitals (DC) and scored 62 runs. The injury sparked after he was hit on the shoulders from Harshal Patel. Yesterday, he decimated the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) bowling to score 48 runs from 13 deliveries.

A decent scorecard

As far as his commercial numbers in the IPL are concerned, they have only seen an upward trend. According to professional sports’ salary calculator Moneyball INR 24.05 crore salary across 12 seasons, places Russell at the 59th position in the IPL Player rankings.

In 2012, he was brought by the Delhi Daredevils, now Capitals. After two seasons, he shifted to the Knights franchise. It was in 2015 when he announced himself as he scored 326 runs at an average of 36.22 and a strike-rate of 192.89 with three half-centuries to his credit.

2016 turned out to be a topsy-turvy season as he managed only 188 runs at 26.85. He couldn’t play in 2017 as he was serving a one-year ban. However, KKR decided to retain him at INR 8.5 crore and the franchise did the same even before the ongoing season. And, Russell hasn’t let his team down by any means.