KKR is not giving Russell his full batting: Aakash Chopra

KKR captain Eoin Morgan received criticism after sending all-rounder Andre Russell at No.7 in the batting line-up. Kolkata Knight Riders lost that against Rajasthan Royals (RR). The Jamaican batsman came out to bat in the 16th over of the KKR innings. He could not make much of an impact as he scored only 9 runs in seven deliveries. Former Indian batsman Aakash Chopra has offered his views regarding the same. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra reckoned that the team is not giving Russell his full batting.

The Jaipur-based franchise has lost 6 out of their 7 games against the two-time champions KKR before the game. However, the Royals came out all guns blazing after their embarrassing 10-wicket defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to grab a 6-wicket win over.

Kolkata Knight Riders missed quite a few tricks: Aakash Chopra

KKR. Being asked to bat first, Kolkata struggled right from the beginning. Eoin Morgan and the team could manage to score 133-9 in 20 overs. Rahul Tripathi (36 off 26 balls) and Dinesh Karthik (25 off 24 deliveries) looking in great form for KKR. In response, Samson's 42 not out concluded the run-chase with 6 wickets and 7 balls to spare for RR. Following KKR's defeat, commentator Aakash Chopra said that Kolkata missed quite a few tricks and also highlighted their tactical blunders.

The Kolkata Knight Riders have suffered a disappointing campaign in IPL 2021 so far. Although the side began the tournament with a win against Sunrisers Hyderabad, they lost four games in a row. Their top-order comprising of Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, and Rahul Tripathi have failed to convert their starts into big scores. KKR skipper Eoin Morgan is also struggling for runs in the middle. Thus, the onus will now be on Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik to perform if KKR is to return to winning ways. Kolkata has lost four out of their five games and is at the bottom of the points table. The Eoin Morgan-led team will next play against Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, on 26th April.

IPL 2021: Kolkata Knight Riders full squad

Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Eoin Morgan, Pat Cummins, Rahul Tripathi, Varun Chakravarthy, Pawan Negi, Tim Seifert, Shakib al Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Vaibhav Arora, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Ben Cutting, Venkatesh Iyer

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