CHENNAI: Some of the Kings XI Punjab players have been brilliant in the 13th edition of the IPL with stellar performances, but they have failed as a collective unit. It is a huge concern as they lie rock bottom on the points table.
They have not won a single game in their last four, and it gets difficult for players to pick up themselves up if such things continue for a longer duration. Hence, they will be eager to change fortunes when they come up against Kolkata Knight Riders in Abu Dhabi on Saturday for a day game.
Punjab, who have played six matches so far, are aware about the importance of picking up wins in succession to give themselves a chance to fight for Playoffs spot.
The problem for the franchise has been their over dependency on Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul at the top of the order. Though Nicholas Pooran has looked good in the last few matches, others have been a failure. Glenn Maxwell has 48 runs in six innings, Sarfaraz Khan has 33 from 3, Karun Nair has 16 from 3.
One wonders why Chris Gayle has not got a single game in this batting department. To be fair, he was expected to feature in their last contest, but stomach bug ruled him out. With Maxwell out of form, the Aussie may have to sit out for the Universe Boss.
That would definitely strengthen their batting order, but his batting position will be interesting. The southpaw is an automatic choice opener, so is Rahul and Mayank. The latter might come down at 3.
Irrespective of how their batting order may look like, an interesting battle is on the cards with Kolkata possessing some quality bowlers, including Pat Cummins. The first six overs when Punjab bat may well prove to be decisive as the Australian will be eager to make early inroads and get into Punjab’s middle order.
Kolkata also have young pace unit of Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi besides the spin unit comprising Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy.
There might not be a standout bowler for Kolkata so far, but they have chipped in at different stages with wickets. No way has this season seen a dominant and top-notch KKR, but they have managed to pick up three wins from five matches, which puts them in a good position.
One look at their batting shows how their big guns have not hit top gear. In all, only three players from their team have hit half-centuries. The likes of skipper Dinesh Karthik and all-rounder Andre Russell are yet to make a big impression with the bat. Will it be their day on Saturday?
However, Shubman Gill, Eoin Morgan, Nitish Rana and Rahul Tripathi have all contributed with the bat in important times during the tournament so far. Make no mistake, if their big stars shine, it would be a long day for the KXIP bowlers, who have conceded more than 180 runs in their last four matches.
Also, it is time Mohammad Shami leads his team by example with the ball.
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