Kolkata, April 22 (H.S.): The troubles of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League 2025 are showing no signs of stopping. After a 39-run loss to Gujarat Titans (GT) on Monday, captain Ajinkya Rahane raised questions about the team's batting. Rahane stated that the bowlers are performing well, but the consistently failing batting is the reason for the defeats. Meanwhile, the team's mentor Dwayne Bravo also acknowledged that the players have lost their confidence.

Rahane held the batsmen responsible for the loss

After the match, Rahane said, I have no complaints about the bowlers. They performed well. However, our batting has struggled throughout this tournament. Chasing a target of 199 runs was achievable, but we needed a good start, which we failed to provide.

He further added, When you are chasing a big score, the partnership of the opening batsmen is crucial. That is the area where we are lagging. Our starts have been consistently poor, and this has impacted the results.

Team mentor Dwayne Bravo stated in a press conference, The truth is our team is not batting properly. It's not just Andre Russell; many players are in poor form. The IPL is a tournament where if a player starts poorly, they lose confidence. That is what is happening to us right now.

Bravo also mentioned that Russell has to bat at a rate of 14-15 runs per over every time. “The responsibility lies with the opening batsmen and the top-order batsmen to ensure Russell can finish the matches. We wanted to play with a combination of right and left-handed batsmen, which is why Angkrish Raghuwanshi was sent lower down the order. However, when players are not in form, plans become ineffective.

Consistently failing opening pair

The opening pair has been KKR's biggest problem. This season, the team's average opening partnership has only been 19.00. On Monday, the new pair of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sunil Narine managed to last only five balls. Rahane acknowledged that this is the team's biggest weakness.

He said, “We are struggling with our batting. We need to perform better even in the middle overs. The bowlers are consistently doing well, but the batsmen also need to take responsibility.”

Captain Ajinkya Rahane stated that the team players are working hard and results will show soon. You have to play bravely in this format. You should forget past things and look ahead. If you keep thinking about getting out, you will get out. You need to focus on scoring runs. I am confident our team will make a comeback.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar