IPL 2021: 5 Reasons Why Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Can Win The Title This Year

The two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have changed their captaincy in the middle of the IPL 2020 and Eoin Morgan will lead the side for the upcoming season. Dinesh Karthik did a decent job in his captaincy period but wanted to hand over the reins to England world cup winning captain Eoin Morgan after his arrival.

Kolkata Knight Riders have acquired the services of Shakib Al Hasan for 3.2 crores in the IPL auction 2021. They have roped in Ben Cutting, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Sheldon Jackson, Pawan Negi, Venkatesh Iyer, and Vaibhav Arora as the new recruits to the team.

IPL 2021: 5 Reasons Why Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Can Win The Title This Year:

5. Variety In Bowling Attack

Kolkata Knight Riders have a good pace attack led by Pat Cummins at the front. Cummins was the most expensive player in the IPL Auction 2020 but did not fulfil his prize money and this year will be a good opportunity for him to show the IPL fans why he was rated so highly.

Kamalesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi have done decently well in last year’s IPL and they have got the pace as well. The mystery spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine were hard to pick and turned out to very effective. They also have the likes of Harbhajan Singh and Kuldeep Yadav to add their spin attack.

4. Eden Gardens As Fortress

Teams have always found it very difficult to play in the Eden Garden with the crowd factor and also with the pitch assisting a lot of spins. KKR has packed their bowling attacks with three spinners or more in their home games and has used the conditions to their advantage a lot.

Eden Gardens is one of the best pitch produced in the nation and Kolkata Knight Riders will be hoping that BCCI finalises Eden garden as one of the grounds for the IPL 2021 which could be an added advantage for KKR.

3. Eoin Morgan’s Captaincy

Eoin Morgan has captained his nation to their first 50 over World Cup win in 2019 which is not an easy task by any means and Kolkata Knight Riders would be looking for Morgan to continue his good captaincy from the international stages into the IPL.

Eoin Morgan has added depth in the middle order and can bat at 4 when the team needs. Morgan’s captaincy has reduced the pressure on wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik who can concentrate on finishing the innings.

2. Talented Youngsters

Shubman Gill has always been talked highly of being the next big thing in Indian cricket and he had an excellent start to his international career in the Australian tour where he notched up an important 91 in the famous win at Gabba. Gill was the top scorer for KKR in IPL 2020 with 440 runs from 14 games.

Kolkata Knight Riders have good domestic talent in the form of Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi and Karun Nair who have had a lot of IPL experience and if they could step up, then KKR will have a strong chance to win.

1.Andre Russell’s Form

The key to KKR’s success has always been Andre Russell and he will again play a big part if they have to win the trophy. Russell can destroy the bowling coming down the order and can hit the deck hard while bowling. He had an excellent run of form in the 2019 IPL and was instrumental in keeping KKR’s hopes alive for the playoffs.

Russell’s injury will also be a major concern for the Kolkata Knight Riders and if he can be fit for the 14 games, then KKR will fancy their chances to win the title.