One problem is not giving up the chase of KKR, even 7 players could not find a solution, will the new captain be able to remove the tension?

New Delhi. In IPL 2023, Kolkata Knight Riders will face Punjab Kings in Mohali. Both the teams are struggling with the same problem. Both teams will enter the first match of the 16th season of IPL without important players. Punjab Kings have got a big blow even before the start of this season. Dashing batsman Johnny Bairstow will not play in the entire season. At the same time, power hitter Liam Livingstone and fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will also not feature in the first match. At the same time, Shakib Al Hasan and Liton Das will also not play in the first match from KKR.

The command of Kolkata Knight Riders is in the hands of Nitish Rana this season. But, an old problem is not leaving the team. Due to this in the last season, KKR was ranked seventh. This problem of KKR is the flop show of the openers. The biggest reason for KKR falling behind in IPL 2022 was the top order batsmen not being able to provide a solid start to the team.

In IPL 2022, KKR tried 6 combinations in the opening
KKR had released Shubman Gill before IPL 2022. The opening pair of him and Venkatesh Iyer was a hit. But, after the departure of Shubman, KKR could not find a strong opener and the team yearned for a good start throughout the season. In IPL 2022, KKR tried not one or two, but 6 different combinations in the opening. But, not a single team could work. KKR tried 8 players as openers in the last IPL. It included Sunir Narine, Sam Billings, Aaron Finch, Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Baba Indrajit and Abhijeet Tomar. Not even one of these batters could get the team off to a strong start while opening.

The team will field a new opening pair in IPL 2023 as well.
This was the reason that KKR openers had the lowest average (15.8) in IPL 2022. KKR were also far behind Gujarat Titans (26.40), who were at number two. Even in IPL 2023, the problem of salami does not seem to leave the team behind. In this season too, KKR will field with a new opening pair. KKR can try one of Afghanistan’s wicketkeeper batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Narayan Jagdishan in the opening. Narayan Jagadishan has hit the biggest score of List-A cricket before IPL. Both of them can also play the role of wicketkeeper.

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Apart from this, after the arrival of Liton Das in IPL 2023, KKR can try him in the opening along with Venkatesh Iyer. Liton is an aggressive opener and bats fast in T20. He also batted well on India’s tour of Bangladesh. Apart from this, the pair of Mandeep Singh and Sunil Narine can also be tried in the opening. Sunil has already shown his mettle in the opening.

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Tags: IPL 2023, Kolkata Knight Riders, Nitish rana, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer