Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders have struggled throughout this IPL season, and the changes they made for the home game against Gujarat Titans didn’t help them, feels former captain Eoin Morgan. KKR’s defeat to Gujarat Titans by 39 runs was their second consecutive defeat in the tournament, third in the last five matches and overall fifth in eight games as well. It has also been a season of struggle at home for them, who have also lost three of the four matches at the Eden Gardens as well.
“Kolkata Knight Riders has simply not bounced back as well as we would have liked them to. It’s always a good sign for a strong team with a lot of character around, but they had the same failures that they’ve shown throughout the tournament,” said JioStar expert Morgan. “They made a couple of changes (against GT), mainly to try and gain some impetus in their batting line-up, and it didn’t necessarily come off. Were the changes worth it? They’ll sit back and say no.” Morgan said KKR failed to forge partnerships in chase of 199 as they finished at an ordinary 159 for eight.”
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“It was interesting to hear Ajinkya Rahane talk about 199 being a chaseable score because towards the back end of Gujarat Titans’ innings, we thought the ball held up more than we expected (and) that made finding boundaries harder,” he again said. “But there was no rhythm, no substantial partnerships — almost the polar opposite of what Gujarat Titans displayed.”
However, Eoin Morgan lauded Team India and GT pacer Prasidh Krishna, who delivered another vital spell of 4-0-25-2 as well.
“He’s the purple cap holder at the moment, and his rhythm just keeps getting better. We know he has that extra bit of pace to work with, but you have to admire the strength he brings during the middle phase of the game. As a captain, having a seamer who can make that kind of impact in the middle overs is absolutely priceless. He now finds himself with the most wickets in this year’s tournament — by some margin, actually, by four. It’s great to see him growing as a player, evolving across formats, and now being rewarded with national honours as well,” Eoin Morgan concluded.
