MI vs KKR: Andre Russell Can Bowl Four Overs At Any Point In The Innings - Pat Cummins On KKR Having A Bowler Short Against Mumbai Indians

Pat Cummins of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) claimed that putting an additional batsman on the pitch enabled them to play more aggressively while trusting Andre Russell’s bowling.

KKR accomplished the double over Mumbai Indians (MI) on Monday, winning by 52 runs at DY Patil Stadium.

The Knight Riders’ batting lineup was unable to build on the base built by Venkatesh Iyer (43 off 24) and Nitish Rana (43 off 26), as Jasprit Bumrah (5 for 10) reduced them to 165 for 9. With part-timers scheduled to bowl four overs, it may have appeared to be an easy chase, but Cummins placed his weight behind Russell.

Tilak Varma and Ramandeep Singh were both dismissed by the renowned all-rounder. Russell came into the attack in the fifth over, but Venkatesh Iyer’s lone overcame in the tenth over of the chase.

“I believe Russ has bowled quite effectively in the last few matches.” He’s a top-notch player who can bowl four overs at any point during an innings. We can comfortably cover the following overs with Venkatesh and Nitish Rana, who did not bowl yesterday.”

“The idea to the batsmen, I believe, was just to go have fun, try to win the game. And maybe the extra batsman gives us a little more freedom,” Pat Cummins Said.

‘I thought Bumrah bowled well’: Pat Cummins

According to Cummins, the KKR bowlers were inspired by Bumrah’s outstanding performance and focused on striking the hard lengths.

“I thought he bowled fantastically.” I believe he demonstrated that playing top of the stumps, back of a length was difficult on this wicket. It’s a vast ground, especially here at DY Patil. You may be confident that being struck for a six will be a good shot.”

“So yeah, our gameplan was quite straightforward – try to bowl straight lines, back of a length, and it worked out,” he explained.

In the IPL 2022 points table, KKR has climbed to seventh place. But, with only five victories in 12 games, Shreyas Iyer’s team will need a miracle to make the playoffs.