Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) power hitter Andre Russell got out after scoring just 9 (11) against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday in the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, this innings has followed Russell’s 7 previous scores where his highest was 24 and where he didn’t face more than 14 balls in any single innings of this IPL.
The Most Valuable Players (MVP) of the last year’s IPL, Russell hasn’t got going with the bat this year and that has cost his side a lot of crucial runs, which they have depended on him for.
In the eight innings, he has batted, he has scored a total of 92 runs off 72 balls with an average of 11.50. After getting out to some serious pace of bowlers like Kagiso Rabada and Jasprit Bumrah, the teams have recognised his weakness and are consistently targeting him with their best pace bowlers when he comes into bat.
On Sunday, he timed a length delivery from left-arm pacer T Natarajan straight into the hands of the fielder standing at cow corner. Russell’s lack of form has not only led to KKR not getting the push at the back-end of their innings but has also caused instability in their middle-order.
The Twitter users are frustrated seeing Russell’s lack of runs, knowing what he can do with the bat. According to them, this is proving to be a forgettable season for him, as last year even his mistimed shots were going for sixes and this year well-timed shots are also finding fielders. Some people have attributed this to the bigger ground in the United Arab Emirates.
Here are some of the reactions:
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)