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Plagued by injuries and unavailability of a few foreign players, both Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders would still look to put their best foot forward as they lock horns in their opening IPL encounter in Mohali on Saturday. These are the two franchises, which over the years have flattered to deceive. Inconsistency in team selections seemed to have also affected the them badly.
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders would bank on Chandrakant Pandit's tactical acumen as they fight injury and a thin on quality batting line-up in their bid to reclaim the coveted IPL title after nine years. In the IPL mini-auction in December last year, KKR bought eight players with Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan being their biggest buy at Rs 1.5 crore.
Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Chandrakant Pandit is hoping that their full time skipper Shreyas Iyer will return to action "very soon" and until then, he expects Nitish Rana to do well in the high-pressure leadership role. A recurring back injury is likely to keep Iyer out of action for the first half of the IPL. He had also missed the first and fourth Test against Australia due to the persistent back issues. "Whatever little cricket I have played or coached, I have never gone back over things like squad unavailability. Shreyas' absence will make a difference since he is important, but this is truly unfortunate. "We are hoping Shreyas will be back very soon and that will make a lot of difference to the team," Pandit said on Tuesday night.
Newly-appointed Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Nitish Rana on Tuesday said he is up for the responsibility given to him and would bank on man management to deliver results for the side in the upcoming IPL. "Man management is important because at the end of the day, it is a game of cricket," Nitish said in a press conference. "I have been playing the leadership role for the last 2-3 years, it's just that I got the captaincy tag but it's nothing new to me. I like to take responsibility and, hopefully, I will be able to deliver.
Kolkata Knight Riders are all geared up for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League, where they will be opening their campaign against Punjab Kings on Saturday in Mohali. The two-time champions will be missing out on the services of their skipper and powerful batter Shreyas Iyer, as he is recovering from a back injury. In his absence, Delhi-based batter Nitish Rana will be leading the pack. KKR have got many names in their squad and one of them being, New Zealand ace pacer Lockie Ferguson. The Kiwi quick had earlier played for KKR between 2019-2021, before he was acquired by Gujarat Titans in 2022. However, Ferguson will be donning the purple jersey again as he was traded back to KKR before the mini auctions in December last year.
Nitish Rana has been appointed stand-in skipper for Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 in the absence of Shreyas Iyer who suffered a back injury during the recently concluded Test series between India and Australia. Several media reports suggested that both Rana and veteran West Indies spinner Sunil Narine were being considered for the leadership role, but the franchise confirmed their decision on social media. Rana, who has been part of the KKR side since 2018, has led Delhi in white-ball cricket and he will be supported by senior cricketers like Andre Russell and Shakib Al Hasan.
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) revealed their jersey for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday. The official Twitter handle of the franchise took to social media to reveal the new jersey. The jersey reveal features the franchise's star all-rounder Andre Russell along with young Indian stars like Rinku Singh and Venkatesh Iyer. The team has not strayed away from its usual purple and gold colours.
Kolkata Knight Riders were dealt a massive blow ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 as sources told NDTV that skipper Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of the entire tournament due to injury. Shreyas suffered a back injury during the Test series against Australia and he is scheduled to undergo back surgery that will sideline him for 2-3 months. The absence of Iyer – who was bought for Rs 12.25 crore in 2022 – will be huge for KKR as they will be missing a prominent batter. In the absence of Shreyas, here are the three cricketers who can replace him as KKR skipper -