Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) haven’t yet really found their rhythm in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Currently placed fifth on the points table with just 2 points to their name; the Knight Riders have been hard done by the poor form of some of their most experienced players.
The likes of Andre Russell, Shakib al Hasan, Dinesh Karthik, and captain Eoin Morgan have proven to be largely ineffective thus far. The bowling, while not as disappointing, has only managed to impress in patches. Moreover, the exclusion of certain international stars like Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, and Kuldeep Yadav has also raised quite a few eyebrows outside of the Knights’ dugout. The men-in-purple really need to sort out their perfect playing eleven should they wish to contend as genuine frontrunners for their third IPL title.
Speaking of Kuldeep Yadav, the 26-year-old Chinaman bowler hasn’t really had much luck in the cricketing arena; both in the IPL and the international front. In the KKR lineup, he currently finds himself out of favour while mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy keeps hogging the limelight. And his prowess for the Indian national team has also been somewhat underwhelming: so much so that the BCCI decided to demote him to the grade C bracket for the current contractual season.
“Will soon feature in KKR’s playing XI”- Kuldeep Yadav
Thankfully, Kuldeep hasn’t yet given up on his aspirations to win games for his team and is confident of reclaiming a spot in the KKR playing XI. “Only 3 matches have happened so far. I’m hoping to get a place in the final XI soon, and I will perform well”, Kuldeep told PTI Bhusha in a recent interview.
The left-arm leggie also revealed two of the toughest batsman he has ever faced in the IPL. According to Kuldeep, AB de Villiers’ ability to smash the ball around to any part of the ground makes him one of the hardest customers to bowl at. At the same time, he was also in awe of Rohit Sharma’s impeccable timing in playing his shots.
“De Villiers, Rohit toughest batsmen; Gayle and Dhoni true IPL legends”
“I find it difficult to bowl against AB de Villiers and Rohit Sharma. De Villiers can smash the ball in any corner of the ground, while Rohit has plenty of time.”
Further, he named Punjab Kings’ Chris Gayle and Chennai Super Kings Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the ultimate IPL legends. Kuldeep reasoned that both the players’ consistency in run-scoring set them a notch above every other batsman in the tournament.
“If we look from the beginning, then MS Dhoni and Chris Gayle are truly the legends of the IPL. They have been performing well since the first season,” he opined.