Defending the title is one of the hardest things in the Indian Premier League. Chennai Super Kings (2010, 2011) and Mumbai Indians (2019, 2020) were the only two sides to win back-to-back titles. Since 2021, teams have been abysmal with their title defense. Mumbai Indians (2020 winner) and Chennai Super Kings (2021 and 2023 winner) failed to reach the playoffs in the following years. Gujarat Titans was the only team to reach the final in 2023 after winning the title in 2022.
Kolkata Knight Riders, the winner of IPL 2024, are in a similar boat. Ajinkya Rahane’s side are languishing at 6th in the points table, taking just 11 points from 12 matches. Defeating Royal Challengers Bengaluru tonight and Sunrisers Hyderabad on May 25 may not be enough for KKR to reach the playoffs. They need two of Punjab Kings, Mumbai Indians, and Delhi Capitals to have ridiculously poor results so that they can sneak into the playoffs as the fourth-best team.
This article analyses the reasons for KKR’s downfall
Unstable opening pair
Despite trying 8 different opening pairs, KKR managed to have just two fifty-plus stands for the first wicket in 2023. The management fixed the problem by pairing Phil Salt and Sunil Narine at the top of the order in 2024. The duo rocked the season with 5 fifties and 1 century stand in just 12 innings for the first wicket.
Fast forward to 2025, and KKR have managed 0 fifty partnerships for the first wicket in 11 completed innings. Quinton de Kock as Phil Salt’s replacement didn’t yield the desired results.
Expensive disappointment
KKR couldn’t retain Venkatesh Iyer ahead of the mega auction. They had to let go of Mitchell Starc, Phil Salt, and Venkatesh Iyer. The management would have retained the whole squad had they been provided an option.
But the KKR think tank shocked everyone by shelling out 23.75 crore for Venkatesh Iyer. Venkatesh has endured a tough campaign, scoring just 142 runs in 7 innings. He failed to cross 15 runs in five of the seven innings.
The middle-order roulette
T20 cricket is an ever-evolving format. Teams keep a flexible batting order for varying reasons. Matchups and match situations are the two key reasons for teams to promote or demote a particular batter. But it looks like KKR have overcomplicated their strategies at times.
KKR lost two winnable games due to their batting.Â
They lost to Lucknow Super Giants (238/3) by Kolkata Knight Riders (234/7) by 4 runs, despite needing just 77 from 43 balls with 8 wickets in hand. They moved Rinku Singh to the number 8 position, only to keep a left-right pair at the crease. KKR batters also failed to chase 112 against Punjab Kings.Â
KKR would have been sitting pretty in third place, just by simply winning those two winnable games.
Absence of an intimidating overseas pacer
Mitchell Starc had an ordinary league stage in 2024 for KKR. Yet, he showed his mettle in Qualifier 1 and the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Anrich Nortje and Spencer Johnson couldn’t create a similar impact this year. Andre Russell has been deployed sparingly by Captain Rahane.
Fine margins can make or break an IPL campaign, and KKR have been on the wrong side of things more often than not.
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