Former Indian player Pragyan Ojha said that Sunil Narine could be returned to the top of the order for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
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Former Indian player Pragyan Ojha said that Sunil Narine could be returned to the top of the order for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). However, his comments came as the two-time IPL title winners have been struggling with their opening combination for their last league game after Ajinkya Rahane’s injury. Notably, KKR to play a must-win game against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the hope to remain alive in the playoff race of IPL 2022 as well. Moreover, the KKR side has already used five opening combinations over the course of the tournament as well.
KKR used the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Aaron Finch, Sunil Narine, Sam Billings and Baba Indrajith in the opening slot but no one could click there as well. And, Ojha said that since Sunil Narine is a tried and tested option for KKR before too, he can open for his side as well. While speaking on Cricbuzz, he explained his thoughts behind this as well.
He said, “Sunil Narine is a tried and tested option for KKR at the top of the order. He is an attacking option. With that you can pick a player in the middle order as a dynamic option.” However, KKR struggled with inconsistency throughout the campaign despite a bright start. They faced a five-match losing streak that brought them to the bottom half of the points table in IPL 2022 as well. While talking about their struggle and not-so-best playing XI, former wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel has shared his views during the same interaction as well.
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“They can look to bring Aaron Finch in for Sam Billings. In place of Rahane, they can introduce an Indian bowler. To bring in a wicket-keeper, they will have to drop someone else for Sheldon Jackson. Another option is to bring in Sheldon Jackson for Ajinkya Rahane or take a chance with Aman Khan. There is so much confusion because there have been that many changes,” he added.
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Apart from Ajinkya Rahane, the side will also be without the services of their veteran speedster Pat Cummins, who departed for Australia after a hip injury. Meanwhile, KKR has returned to the winning zone with back-to-back wins, but it could prove to be costly if other results do not go in their favour as well. Meanwhile, Venkatesh Iyer’s poor form forced the management to introduce constant changes to find their ideal playing XI as well and he was moved down the order too but their plan didn’t work either way.
However, KKR will take on LSG in their final league stage game at the DY Patil Stadium on May 18. Patel said: “Narine sometimes opens the innings, the next game he is demoted to No.9. Venkatesh Iyer might have seen every number in the batting order. It is clear that there is confusion in their approach and thinking.”
