IPL 2021: Twitter bashes KKR team management for not promoting Andre Russell up the order

Not for the first time did many fail to decode KKR’s strange tactics about holding their most powerful striker till the fag end of the innings

By Pratyay Tiwari

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Andre Russell
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Andre Russell. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are up against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 18th match of the Indian Premier League. Having made a scratchy start to their campaign, both sides occupy the bottom two spots in the table, with the former being a spot above owing to their superior net run rate.

Winning the toss, the Royals’ skipper inserted KKR to bat, although struggling to come to terms with a slightly sluggish track at the Wankhede Stadium, KKR was thwarted by regular fall of wickets and lost their top-three batsmen at the half-way mark. As if the struggle of their openers was not enough, the Riders lost their skipper Eoin Morgan for a diamond duck in a sheer unfortunate manner as the batsman came in the path of the ball that ricocheted to the fielder and led to his run-out.

Not scoring even a run-a-ball until that time, KKR, who had already sent Sunil Narine and Rahul Tripathi ahead of Andre Russell, opted to send Dinesh Karthik, still holding Russell back. The burly all-rounder came as late as the 16th over of the innings, and could not repeat his heroics from the last game when he whacked a 22-ball 54 to send jitters down the Chennai Super Kings’ camp.

Twitter bashes KKR decision to hold Andre Russell

Not for the first time did many fail to decode KKR’s strange tactics about holding their most powerful striker till the fag end of the innings. Coming in as late meant that he had to slog from the word go, more so because of the sluggish display by those who batted before him.

Russell holed out to David Miller at long-on for a 7-ball 9, falling for the fourth time to Chris Morris in his IPL career. This reignited the debate of sending him over other batsmen for the simplest reason of giving him more time and deliveries in the middle.

The tactics of the team made little sense after the kind of form the Jamaican had shown in the previous encounter when he entered as early as the 6th over the innings after CSK had reduced KKR to 31/5. In one of the most brutal hitting exhibitions, he smacked six sixes and three fours, adding 81 in just 39 deliveries alongside Dinesh Karthik before Sam Curran removed him.

Given how KKR has fared hitherto, trying Russell earlier might have been their chance to score better than 133/9, although, apart from a disappointing score, they managed to disappoint many others too.

Here’s how Twitter reacted:

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IPL 2025Kolkata Knight RidersRajasthan Royals