'Retained are not performing well' - Wasim Jaffer, Nikhil Chopra discuss KKR's form in IPL 2022

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have managed to secure only three wins in eight league matches of Indian Premier League 2022. With a couple of more losses, the team will be out of the playoff race this season. Currently, they are up against the challenge of Delhi Capitals (DC) in their ninth league match. Ahead of the fixture, former Indian cricketers Wasim Jaffer and Nikhil Chopra discussed the form of KKR in the ongoing season.

Jaffer thinks KKR has put a solid team this season but has failed on almost all fronts like the opening partnerships, death bowling, and the average performances from the spinners. He reckoned that Umesh Yadav has lost his wicket-taking form, and the team has gradually relied on the contributions of Shreyas Iyer and Andre Russell. Jaffer added that the team needs to pull things for better, otherwise it will be too late.

“I think KKR is a great team on paper, but the way they have many loopholes like the openers have not done well, the spinners have not been impressive and death bowling has always been an issue. Umesh was doing well, but is not picking wickets in the last few matches, and they are relying heavily on Shreyas Iyer and Andre Russell. The other guys need to step up and need to get their act together,” said Wasim Jaffer on Sky247.net presents ‘Not Just Cricket’ Show on CricTracker.

‘They are not able to score runs’: Nikhil Chopra on Venkatesh Iyer and Nitish Rana’s form

Chopra reckoned that the batters like Venkatesh Iyer and Nitish Rana have not done well this season to give the team momentum in the middle order to chase down the tough totals. It must be noted that Venkatesh had been swapped from the opening slot to number six position, which turned out to be a failed move from the management. He added that the wickets have been quite good, and the teams have been scoring close to 180, but they have underperformed, which is certainly a worrying sign for the franchise.

“The thing surprises me that some of their senior guys who have been around or retained are not performing well. Venkatesh Iyer and Nitish Rana have not been able to finish off the games, or not replicate their previous performances. With the kind of experience you have, there were many hopes pinned by the management and fans. The wickets have been pretty good, but they are not able to score runs, which is a worrying sign,” Nikhil Chopra said.