IPL: Lockie Ferguson and Carlos Brathwaite likely to part ways with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

Back in July, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Jacques Kallis and his assistant Simon Katich bid adieu to the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise. Later it was known that Jhanvi Mehta, co-owner Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta’s daughter, is set to take charge of the Men in Gold and Purple. Last time around, KKR had a disappointing outing under the leadership of Dinesh Karthik.

The Knights couldn’t qualify for the play-offs after losing to Mumbai Indians (MI) in their last encounter. Andre Russell was the team’s standout performer in the cash-rich tournament. Karthik and Co started with some wins, but lost their way in the middle, losing matches in heaps. The Kolkata-based team is now set to undergo a few more changes, this time in the squad.

The probable major changes in the KKR camp

Lately, it has been learned that Lockie Ferguson and Carlos Brathwaite may leave the franchise as per reports in Indian Express. The Knights’ bowling was a disappointment last season as it failed to deliver the goods. Ferguson, who was one of New Zealand’s star performer in the 2019 World Cup, was in and out of KKR owing to his inconsistent form throughout the extravaganza.

In the five matches, he played, Ferguson could only manage a couple of wickets. He conceded runs at an economy of 10.76 and an average of 91.50, something which summed up his lacklustre run. The speedster was brought at a price of INR 1.6 crores from a base price of 1 crore. As far as Brathwaite is concerned, KKR shelled out a whopping INR 5 crore for the all-rounder.

During the IPL though, he had to warm the benches for a chunk of the event. Brathwaite only ended up playing two matches in which he went wicketless and scored a mere 11 runs. The hulk-like cricketer was assumed to have been drafted in as a back-up to Andre Russell, who’s a tad injury-prone.

Russell indeed developed quite a few injuries, but the Jamaican kept on playing and was successful in all departments. If he departs, then KKR may eye another quality all-rounder in the auction. If Ferguson goes, then their bowling would be weakened and the Knights would need a replacement.