IPL Auction 2022: Kolkata Knight Riders retentions are impressive but can they find supporting cast?

Kolkata Knight Riders, with two titles, are the third most successful team in the history of the Indian Premier League and they added to their impressive record by an inspired run to the final in the 2021 edition.

The Knight Riders had an up-and-down IPL season the last time around but at the business end, they upped their game and won four games in a row to seal a spot in the final. They lost the title to Chennai Super Kings but did their reputation no harm.

An interesting aspect of Kolkata’s IPL 2021 campaign was the fact that none of their players had a standout season. Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer did the bulk of the scoring while Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine led their wicket-taking chart, but none of these players’ performance was among the best of the season overall.

Eoin Morgan as skipper was definitely a key figure in KKR’s success last season. England’s World Cup-winning captain proved his mettle once again by leading with a calm head and utilising his squad most effectively.

Kolkata’s retentions heading into the mega auction are impressive. In Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy they have high-impact players who can be spread out nicely in the playing XI.

Iyer is strong at the top of the order and can chip in some overs too, Russell is arguably the most destructive batter in world cricket (and can bowl too depending on his fitness), Narine is a match-winner with the ball and dangerous with the bat, while Varun is a strike bowler.

The absence of Morgan and Gill from this list was perhaps the surprise. Morgan played a crucial role as leader last season while Gill was Kolkata’s highest run-scorer in the last two seasons. Gill has now been acquired by Gujarat Titans for Rs 7 crore and it remains to be seen if KKR try to bring Morgan back.

Recent auction history: Hit or miss?

Venkatesh Iyer was without a doubt the best signing by KKR in the 2021 auction. They acquired the all-rounder for Rs 20 lakh and he proved to be a key player for them once he got his opportunity in the playing XI.

Iyer was promoted to the top of the order and ended up scoring 370 runs at an average of 41.11 and a strike-rate of 128.47. The left-handed batter is a handy medium pace bowler as well and despite playing just 10 IPL games in his career, his performances helped him make his international debut too.

The other significant signing by the Knight Riders was Shakib Al Hasan for Rs 3.2 crore. The senior Bangladesh all-rounder didn’t have a notable season though, scoring 47 runs and picking four wickets in eight games.

Any off-season changes since IPL 2021?

The big change in the coaching staff for KKR ahead of the upcoming season was the appointment of Bharat Arun as the bowling coach. The 59-year-old spent several years as the bowling coach of the Indian team and played a key role in building a strong attack. He has the experience of nurturing talents and KKR will hope for more of the same from him.

Brendon McCullum continues to be the head coach, with David Hussey (mentor), Abhishek Nayar (assistant coach), Omkar Salvi (assistant bowling coach) and James Foster (fielding coach) making up the rest of the coaching staff.

Who’s saying what

“Even though a lot of people think cricket is inclined towards the batsman, I would look at it differently. I would say that therein lies an opportunity for me as a bowler to excel. Yes, there are limitations for bowlers. But again, they know that if they execute and if they can build a little more guile around their bowling, they have a chance to be a hero,” Bharat Arun was quoted as saying by KKR.