IPL 2022 | 'Chopping and changing isn’t ideal' - Tim Southee on KKR’s form

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) started on a fine note with three wins in five league matches. But, since then have sustained four consecutive losses, which has certainly impacted the confidence of the whole squad. Currently, they are at the eighth position in the points table with only three wins in nine games.

In their recent fixture against the Delhi Capitals (DC) at Wankhede Stadium, the team was stuttering at one point, with the scoreboard reading 35/4 until the 8th over. The partnership between Shreyas Iyer (42) and Nitish Rana (57) helped them gain momentum before the former was caught behind in the 14th over.

A late push from Rinku Singh (23* off 16) steered the team to a score of 146, which looked like a respectable total on the board. DC struggled but chased down the score in response, with David Warner and Rovman Powell as key contributors. For KKR, Umesh Yadav was phenomenal with 3/25 off four overs.

KKR seamer Tim Southee answered a few questions in the post-match conference after the game against DC. He opined on the bad form of the openers and said they had tried different combinations but failed to get a good start. He further added that few of their players need to find back their form. 

“We’ve tried a few opening combinations, and there are no bad players in the IPL; they’re all class acts. The guys who’ve opened have pure class as well. So, it’s just about guys finding form and running with guys who’ve found form,” Southee said. 

Then, the Kiwi ace reckoned that chopping down and changing in team's playing XI isn’t ideal but accepted that it is done due to the team’s consecutive losses.

“The chopping and changing nature isn’t ideal, but that happens when you aren’t winning a lot of games,” the pacer added.  

In the first five games, Ajinkya Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer opened the innings for KKR. Then three different combinations were used with the likes of Sunil Narine, Aaron Finch, and Sam Billings also invited to open the team.

In their next league match, the Knight Riders will be up against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on May 2 at Wankhede Stadium. If the team has to secure the playoffs spot, they need to win a minimum of four out of their next five league matches.