Knight Riders need to get their act right

Calcutta: Two defeats in three matches was not something the Kolkata Knight Riders had envisaged when they launched their campaign ten days ago in IPL-VI. Everything seemed to fall into place when they walloped the Delhi DareDevils in the opener, but it has been a bumpy ride since.

Defeats against the Rajasthan Royals and the Royal Challengers Bangalore have put the defending champions under pressure but Gautam Gambhir’s men are taking inspiration from their last season’s successful campaign.

The Knight Riders had lost their two opening encounters in IPL-V but came back strongly to win the next two that kept them in the hunt for the knockout stage.

“It’s pretty difficult, the momentum is not with us at the moment,” admitted Eoin Morgan on Saturday.

“But tomorrow at our home ground, we will try and produce the skills and concentrate on the things we do best. Hopefully, we can produce a win against Sunrisers Hyderabad.”

If the batting failures led to their loss in Jaipur, one Chris Gayle took the game away from them in Bangalore. Wiser by the experience, they seemed determined not to repeat the mistakes during practice on Saturday.

There’s a strong possibility that Brendon McCullum, who joined the side in Bangalore, could be included in the team and open the innings in place of Manvinder Bisla, who hasn’t been among the runs. If McCullum plays, he will also be entrusted with the task of wicket-keeping, a task he has performed with efficiency for the Knight Riders in the past.

McCullum’s inclusion and his opening combination with Gambhir will also give the team the much-needed momentum at the top. The Knight Riders’ best opening partnership so far in this edition has been 19.

If McCullum makes it to the XI, Jacques Kallis, Eoin Morgan and Sunil Narine will form the overseas quartet. But don’t be surprised if Brett Lee is drafted in to take advantage of the Sunrisers’ inexperienced middle-order.

A lot will depend on Gambhir and Narine. The Knight Riders captain has been in fine nick, and if he gets going, the task of the other batsmen becomes a lot easier. Gambhir provides the tempo and stability that is essential in building a tall score.

Equally impressive has been the West Indies off-spinner. He’s been an enigma, which most of the batsmen have found hard to unravel.

Despite the in-depth analyses, he continues to beat technology and stays ahead of his rivals. The consistency with which he surprises the batsmen in the Twenty20 format and fascinates the spectators remains unmatched.

The Sunrisers will have to come up with something special to counter the challenge and the outcome will depend a lot on how they tackle his four overs.

Not many gave the Sunrisers a chance at the outset, but the Kumar Sangakkara-led side has surprised all with their team effort and discipline. No doubt their unheralded tag has worked to their advantage.

The Sunrisers’ bowling has played a big part in their winning three out of the four matches so far. Dale Steyn has been brilliant in his opening spell and also at the death.

Ishant Sharma has also been encouraging and among the wickets.

He’s been capitalising on the batsmen’s tendency to break the shackles, attempting expansive strokes after being bogged down by Steyn at the other end.

It, however, remains to be seen how much success Steyn achieves on the slow Eden Gardens wicket. A 4 pm start along with the prevailing sultry conditions will also weigh against him.

“Steyn has been bowling particularly well,” admitted Morgan.

The Sunrisers spinners have also played their role to perfection, especially Amit Mishra and Thisara Perera. The leg-spinner gave away only 15 runs in his four overs in their last match against the Delhi DareDevils.

The likes of Kedar Jadhav and Ashish Reddy have also been useful, prompting Sangakkara to acknowledge that the domestic players have been outstanding.

They will have to maintain their form if they are to outsmart the Knights in their own den.