Andre Russell Can Control Last 10 Overs Of A T20 Game: Brendon McCullum

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Brendon McCullum has hinted the West Indies power house Andre Rusell might bat in the last 10 overs during IPL 2020. KKR will largely depend on the power-hitting ability of Andre Russell to get them to a challenging total or chase down daunting targets.

Russell is the most valuable player in the KKR set up. McCullum said that Russell hit around 50-odd sixes in the IPL last season and thus his game is suited in the final over as he can take control of the game during that situation.

“Russell hit 54 [he hit 52] sixes last season. He came out of the telephone box on so many occasions. His game is definitely suited to probably the last ten overs of a T20 game where he can really control it.

“But there may be times where match-ups are right and we can enter Andre earlier up the order, but that will be a ‘horses for courses’ type of approach. The good thing is we’ve got a lot of resources to choose from,” McCullum said in a media interaction.

Russell can decimate an opposition. He showed a glimpse of exactly the same in the Indian Premier League (IPL) last season. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will continue to rely on him largely in IPL 2020 and ahead of the season.

In IPL 2019, Russell accumulated 510 runs from the stipulated 14 games at an average of 56.66 and a strike rate of whopping 204.81. The Kolkata franchise will hope the West Indies star to continue his run in IPL 2020 as they chase their third title under the captaincy of Dinesh Karthik.

IPL 2020 will be played entirely in UAE due to the pandemic situation forcing the cricket board to host the tournament away from India. Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah will be the three venues used for the tournament. Dream 11 have been named as the sponsor for the upcoming season of the tournament after VIVO pulled out.