IPL 2021: 4 Stars From Kolkata Knight Riders(KKR) Who Will Have The Onus Of Winning The Title

Kolkata Knight Riders have won two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014 under the leadership of Gautam Gambhir, and they will be looking to win their third title under their new captain Eoin Morgan. Dinesh Karthik who has been leading the team since the 2018 IPL, stepped down from the responsibility in the middle of the season last year.

However, the new captain Eoin Morgan has done wonders for England in limited-overs cricket by winning the Worldcup 2019 and he can take the responsibility with both hands. This will also reduce the burden on Dinesh Karthik who has been short of runs in the last IPL and is due for some better performances. Here are 4 stars from Kolkata Knight Riders(KKR) who will have the onus of winning the title.

4 Stars From Kolkata Knight Riders(KKR) Who Will Have The Onus Of Winning The Title:

Shubman Gill:

Shubman Gill has been performing consistently for the Kolkata Knight Riders and has grown in stature in international cricket in the last few months. He had an impressive start to his international career after scoring half-centuries for India in the Australia tour and was one of the finds of the tour.

Gill finished as the top run-getter for Kolkata Knight Riders in the last season and scored 440 runs in 14 games. He will be keen to take his franchise to the playoffs after missing out on the last two seasons. A lot will be expected from Gill after his recent exploits in international cricket and he will play an important part in KKR’s success.

Sunil Narine:

Sunil Narine had a surprisingly poor season last year as he failed to pick up wickets regularly for the Kolkata franchise which he has been renowned for. Narine’s ineffective bowling has led to Kolkata going for alternate options in Shakib AL Hasan in the auction.

Narine picked up just 5 wickets in the 10 games he played which are way behind his usual standards and he would be looking to improve on those stats. But, the mystery spinner is a match-winner with the ball and if he can find his rhythm back, he will be one of the crucial players for KKR’s success.

Andre Russell:

The all-rounder from West Indies did not have the best of IPL last year after a splendid IPL in the 2019 season. He played 10 games and scored 117 runs in the last season while picking up 6 wickets in 10 games with the ball. Russell has the ability to strike long and demolish any bowling attack.

Injuries have been a concern for him over the years and he will be keen to play throughout the tournament this year. He is a match-winner on any day and has finished off games that looked improbable to be reached. Russell is a wicket-taker with the ball and can provide the much-needed breakthroughs at crucial times.

Pat Cummins:

The Australian speedster has a big responsibility of leading the pace attack for KKR and he will have to improve his numbers for the franchise as he did not have the best of IPL last year. Cummins is the number one bowler in test cricket and is deemed to be among the top bowlers in all formats around the world.

Cummins can generate good pace and hits the deck hard which will be tough for the batsman to play in the test cricket. But T20s haven’t been his comfort zone and he has been on the expensive side most of the time in the shortest format. But he has got the skills to bowl shearing yorkers and swings the new-ball both ways. A successful stint for him could take KKR to reach heights in the upcoming IPL.