IPL 2021: The Continuing Failure of Andre Russell - The Batsman Is Hurting KKR Big Time

Kolkata Knight Riders gifted what should have been an easy win to the Mumbai Indians by making a complete mess of a moderate chase in Chennai on Tuesday. One of the main reasons for their inability to overhaul the total, despite a fine start, was the poor performance with the bat of their star all-rounder Andre Russell. It was a bittersweet day for the West Indian superstar – after returning with his best figures in T20 cricket with the ball, he struggled once again with the bat and could not take KKR over the line in what was one of the easier chases of his IPL career.

IPL 2021 Full Coverage | IPL 2021 Schedule | IPL 2021 Points Tally

Russell came out to bat at 122 for 5 in the 16th over with just 31 needed off 28 deliveries – surely, this was as easy a requirement at the death as it gets in any chase in the IPL. But KKR made heavy weather of it in spite of having the destructive all-rounder and Dinesh Karthik at the crease. Russell looked rusty and out of sorts. He looked a bit tentative at the crease and was almost dismissed off the second delivery of his innings – but was given a reprieve when Krunal Pandya dropped a catch of his own bowling.

Russell looked anxious at the crease and did not score off the first five deliveries he faced in the innings – this, in turn, put pressure on Karthik at the other end as the gap between the runs required and balls remaining started widening. With 22 runs off 18 balls the match was still firmly in favour of KKR – at least according to most stats pundits and predictors. What they did not take into account though was the wretched batting form of the batting star of KKR from 2019 – Andre Russell.

We Have Been Texting: Glenn Maxwell on Virat Kohli’s Role in Bringing Him to RCB for IPL 2021

Russell managed to score just a solitary single off four precious deliveries bowled by Krunal Pandya in the 18th over. He was again lucky as Bumrah dropped him at mid-wicket but the West Indian could not make the most of the two let-offs given to him in the innings. He looked all at sea, was not able to judge the length and trajectory of the balls and did not get a bat on his attempted sweep shots.

The required rate soared and finally Russell was a third time unlucky dismissed by Boult for a hopeless 9 off as many as 15 deliveries at the death. He was hardly in control of any shot he played during his stay at the crease and wasted a number of deliveries which cost KKR the match as they went down by 10 runs. A match they should have won on a canter was handed on a platter to Mumbai Indians – and Russell had to take most of the blame for it.

The all-rounder was in indifferent form with the bat in KKR’s season opener against the Sunrisers too scoring just 5 off 5 deliveries before being dismissed in the 17th over – just when his team needed him to provide the impetus at the death.

Russell’s batting has been on the decline since IPL 2020. His failure with the bat was one of the major reasons for KKR’s disappointing campaign in IPL 2020. He could muster a total of just 117 runs in 9 innings with a highest score of 25 in the edition. Russell got an under-20 score in as many as 7 of the 9 innings in 2020.

It was a stark contrast to the Russell of IPL 2019 who amassed 510 runs in 13 innings at a stunning strike rate of 204.81 including 4 fifties in what was one of the best batting displays in the history of the IPL!

KKR need the Russell of 2019. They need Russell – the destructive batsman in the lower order if they are to challenge the best in the tournament this year.

Get all the IPL news and Cricket Score here

• Andre Russell
• ipl
• IPL 2021
• KKR
• kolkata knight riders