The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season has been difficult for the reigning champions, the Kolkata Knight Riders. The KKR need to make a huge recovery to winning ways in order to advance to the playoffs for the title defence, as they have only won three of their eight games, the most recent of which was against Gujarat Titans in Match 39.
KKR’s hitting has been their biggest worry. Despite having a strong start, Quinton de Kock struggled in the games that followed.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who also failed to make an impression, took his position for the GT match. Although Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Ajinkya Rahane have looked excellent, the middle-order firepower of Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, and Andre Russell hasn’t yet demonstrated their full potential, and bowling coach Dwayne Bravo believes the team has lost confidence.
Bravo stated at the post-match news conference, “IPL is a tough tournament. And when you don’t start well, batsmen go into a period where they lose confidence. And that’s what’s happening at the moment. We just have to keep backing them, and hopefully they come good,” according to the report.
“Russell is an experienced player. He’s a successful player. Just a couple of games, the leg spinners have got him out. But I don’t think we actually had the team batting properly. So that is the reality. Russell is not the only one who is struggling at the moment. But as a group, we have to make sure that the players keep putting in their work and practise, keep preparing well, try to keep them mentally focused,” he said in support of his former Caribbean teammates.
Dwayne Bravo adds that there is nothing wrong with the Eden pitch.
The Kolkata-based team succumbed to the Shubman Gill-led team by a massive 39-run margin while playing at the Eden Gardens in the home city. The arguments between the KKR dugout and the pitch curator Sujan Mukherjee at the venue have already generated a lot of controversy, but the Trinidadian did not point the finger at the Eden deck. Instead, he claimed that both teams compete on the same wicket and that the team with the best performance wins.
“The wicket is in perfect condition. I’m not going to come here to discuss the wicket. We didn’t play a decent game of cricket, and I believe that both teams play on the wicket. Therefore, if we don’t play in the three aspects of the game, the other team will most likely win if they play better. There is nothing wrong with the wicket, so I’m not having any problems. They simply play better than us, in my opinion. Both of their batsmen achieve half-centuries when they bat in the first three, and they win crucial moments. Thus, I believe that was the distinction,” the 41-year-old said.
India
