Kolkata: Kolkata Knight Riders batsmen are ‘low on confidence’ right now, the team’s mentor Dwayne Bravo conceded after the franchise slumped to its fifth loss in eight IPL matches this season, but refused to blame the much-talked-about Eden Gardens pitch for the side’s woes.
KKR were handed a 39-run loss by Gujarat Titans here Monday with skipper Ajinkya Rahane’s 36-ball 50 being the only knock of substance in the steep chase of 198 here.
“IPL is a tough tournament, and when you don’t start well, you know, batsmen go into a period where they lose confidence,” Bravo said at the post-match media interaction, summing up the mood in the dressing room.
“That’s what’s happening at the moment. So like I said, we just have to keep backing them, and hopefully they come good…our batters, low in confidence and normally runs bring confidence.
“Form brings confidence. And we, at the moment, to be honest, don’t have that confidence,” he explained.
The Eden Gardens surface has been under the spotlight this season after the KKR camp voiced concerns about not getting its preferred home track. However, Bravo steered clear of blaming the pitch.
“Nothing is wrong with the wicket. I didn’t come here to talk about the wicket. I think both teams play on the same wicket. We didn’t play a good game of cricket. They played better than us,” he asserted.
Last night’s loss came close on the heels of an embarrassing collapse against Punjab Kings, where they were bundled out for 95 while chasing just 112. Bravo insisted that despite the horror run, the batsmen have been doing everything they can to regain rhythm in practice.
“…they are not sitting back and missing practice. So as coaches, as a group, we cannot fault the effort. It’s just not working out in the middle. But I have to just keep backing the team and supporting the guys.”
Asked about the big-hitting Andre Russell’s continued struggles with the bat, Bravo was quick to dismiss the idea of teams targeting their star all-rounder in particular.
“Russell is not the only one who is struggling at the moment. Russell is an experienced player, he’s a successful player. Actually, as a team we’re not batting properly. So that’s just the reality.
“…But as a group, we have to make sure that the players keep putting in their work and practice, keep preparing well, try to keep them mentally focused,” he explained.
Rahane has done the heavy-lifting, and young Angkrish Raghuvanshi has impressed with his fluent strokeplay. KKR’s decision to send the promising youngster as low as number nine as an impact sub raised several eyebrows in their match against GT.
Bravo, however, defended the move.
“Well, we didn’t start the game for him to bat at number nine. But the way how the game panned out, eventually, he ended up at number nine. So, you know, we tried to create that left-right combination,” he reasoned.
“He’s one of our better players. he’s been doing very well for us throughout the season. But when you’re chasing 200, you try to maximise as much as possible and try to get the guys who have the ability to really hit the ball in the middle.”
Bravo, however, did admit that they were “caught up” with the left-right combination and Raghunvanshi ended up batting way down the order when the match had all but slipped out of their hands.
Bravo acknowledged that finishing has become a massive problem for KKR.
“…there is a fine line between backing a player and trying to come up with the best combination that we can also try to make some changes, make some necessary adjustments to give the team that spot that is missing.
“It’s something we have to discuss as a group, as a staff.”
PTI
