The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had a rather forgettable season in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise, captained by Dinesh Karthik, started with four victories in the first five games and looked amongst the favourites to qualify for the playoffs.

Unfortunately, the Men in Gold and Purple lost their way in the middle and slumped to six defeats in succession. Their last round-robin match against Mumbai Indians (MI) was a must-win affair and KKR ended up losing to bow out of the tournament.

Throughout the IPL, only Andre Russell delivered for them consistently and it was the bowling unit that floundered frantically. Ahead of the next season, the Kolkata-team would be looking to make some changes, which may include releasing a few players.

<strong>Here are three players KKR might axe ahead of IPL 2020</strong>

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-329100" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Carlos-Brathwaite.jpg" alt="Carlos Brathwaite" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-329100" class="wp-caption-text">Carlos Brathwaite. (Photo Source: Instagram)</figcaption>

In the previous auction, the Knight Riders shelled out a massive five crores for Carlos Brathwaite. The humongous amount raised a lot of eyebrows since KKR already had a genuine all-rounder in Andre Russell, who was expected to be first-choice above Carlos.

In the end, the hulk-like Russell ended up playing all the matches even as Brathwaite got opportunities in only a couple of encounters. In those matches, he went wicketless and couldn’t make an impact with the bat as well. Carlos made his debut in the IPL after his 2016 World T20 heroics.

However, he has never been a regular fixture in the T20 tournament, having played only 16 matches in which he scored 181 runs and picked up 13 wickets. KKR can release him and instead rope in someone, who adds to their strength in bowling.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-333551" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Lockie-Ferguson.jpg" alt="Lockie Ferguson" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-333551" class="wp-caption-text">Lockie Ferguson. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption>

Lockie Ferguson has been a genuine wicket-taker for New Zealand in international cricket. His exploits for the national colours also earned him a spot in the KKR team. He was listed in the auction at a price of INR 1 crore. The Knights along with Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) went after the pacer, but the former managed to bag his services at 1.60 crores. However, he didn’t shine in the tournament.

The speedster bowled with sheer pace and venom, but was taken to the cleaners. He wasn’t a regular fixture in the side, having played only five matches in which he picked up only a couple of wickets.

Moreover, he leaked runs at an alarming economy rate of 10.76. If KKR goes on to release him then the franchise has to go all out in the auction for another genuine fast-bowler in the setup.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-341512" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-341512" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption>

Robin Uthappa has been one of the proven match-winners for the Knight Riders over the last few seasons. Back in 2014, he was drafted into the KKR setup and quite immediately, it paid rich dividends. The veteran bagged the Orange Cap, having scored 660 runs at an average of 44 with five half-centuries. Nevertheless, in the last two seasons, Uthappa has tended to strain for form a bit.

In the 2018 edition, he could score at an average of 21.93. The last edition turned out to be a rough one. His strike-rate of 115.10 depicted the travails he had in the middle.

Uthappa also had to face the axe for a couple of matches and clearly found it tough to show fluency in his batting. The Knights would be better if they let go Uthappa and contemplate bringing in a fresh leg next time around.

<p>The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had a rather forgettable season in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise, captained by Dinesh Karthik, started with four victories in the first five games and looked amongst the favourites to qualify for the playoffs.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the Men in Gold and Purple lost their way in the middle and slumped to six defeats in succession. Their last round-robin match against Mumbai Indians (MI) was a must-win affair and KKR ended up losing to bow out of the tournament.</p>
<p>Throughout the IPL, only&nbsp;Andre Russell&nbsp;delivered for them consistently and it was the bowling unit that floundered frantically. Ahead of the next season, the Kolkata-team would be looking to make some changes, which may include releasing a few players.</p>
<h3><strong>Here are three players KKR might axe ahead of IPL 2020</strong></h3>
<h3><strong>1. Carlos Brathwaite</strong></h3>
<figure id="attachment_329100" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-329100" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-329100" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Carlos-Brathwaite.jpg" alt="Carlos Brathwaite" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-329100" class="wp-caption-text">Carlos Brathwaite. (Photo Source: Instagram)</figcaption></figure>
<p>In the previous auction, the Knight Riders shelled out a massive five crores for Carlos Brathwaite. The humongous amount raised a lot of eyebrows since KKR already had a genuine all-rounder in Andre Russell, who was expected to be first-choice above Carlos.</p>
<p>In the end, the hulk-like Russell ended up playing all the matches even as Brathwaite got opportunities in only a couple of encounters. In those matches, he went wicketless and couldn’t make an impact with the bat as well. Carlos made his debut in the&nbsp;IPL&nbsp;after his 2016 World T20 heroics.</p>
<p>However, he has never been a regular fixture in the T20 tournament, having played only 16 matches in which he scored 181 runs and picked up 13 wickets. KKR can release him and instead rope in someone, who adds to their strength in bowling.</p>
<h3>2. Lockie Ferguson</h3>
<figure id="attachment_333551" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-333551" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-333551" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Lockie-Ferguson.jpg" alt="Lockie Ferguson" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-333551" class="wp-caption-text">Lockie Ferguson. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption></figure>
<p>Lockie Ferguson has been a genuine wicket-taker for New Zealand in international cricket. His exploits for the national colours also earned him a spot in the KKR team. He was listed in the auction at a price of INR 1 crore. The Knights along with Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) went after the pacer, but the former managed to bag his services at 1.60 crores. However, he didn’t shine in the tournament.</p>
<p>The speedster bowled with sheer pace and venom, but was taken to the cleaners. He wasn’t a regular fixture in the side, having played only five matches in which he picked up only a couple of wickets.</p>
<p>Moreover, he leaked runs at an alarming economy rate of 10.76. If KKR goes on to release him then the franchise has to go all out in the auction for another genuine fast-bowler in the setup.</p>
<h3>3. Robin Uthappa</h3>
<figure id="attachment_341512" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-341512" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-341512" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-341512" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption></figure>
<p>Robin Uthappa has been one of the proven match-winners for the Knight Riders over the last few seasons. Back in 2014, he was drafted into the KKR setup and quite immediately, it paid rich dividends. The veteran bagged the Orange Cap, having scored 660 runs at an average of 44 with five half-centuries. Nevertheless, in the last two seasons, Uthappa has tended to strain for form a bit.</p>
<p>In the 2018 edition, he could score at an average of 21.93. The last edition turned out to be a rough one. His strike-rate of 115.10 depicted the travails he had in the middle.</p>
<p>Uthappa also had to face the axe for a couple of matches and clearly found it tough to show fluency in his batting. The Knights would be better if they let go Uthappa and contemplate bringing in a fresh leg next time around.</p>

<p>The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had a rather forgettable season in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise, captained by Dinesh Karthik, started with four victories in the first five games and looked amongst the favourites to qualify for the playoffs.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the Men in Gold and Purple lost their way in the middle and slumped to six defeats in succession. Their last round-robin match against Mumbai Indians (MI) was a must-win affair and KKR ended up losing to bow out of the tournament.</p>
<p>Throughout the IPL, only Andre Russell delivered for them consistently and it was the bowling unit that floundered frantically. Ahead of the next season, the Kolkata-team would be looking to make some changes, which may include releasing a few players.</p>
<h3><strong>Here are three players KKR might axe ahead of IPL 2020</strong></h3>
<h3><strong>1. Carlos Brathwaite</strong></h3>
<figure id="attachment_329100" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-329100" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-329100" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Carlos-Brathwaite.jpg" alt="Carlos Brathwaite" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-329100" class="wp-caption-text">Carlos Brathwaite. (Photo Source: Instagram)</figcaption></figure>
<p>In the previous auction, the Knight Riders shelled out a massive five crores for Carlos Brathwaite. The humongous amount raised a lot of eyebrows since KKR already had a genuine all-rounder in Andre Russell, who was expected to be first-choice above Carlos.</p>
<p>In the end, the hulk-like Russell ended up playing all the matches even as Brathwaite got opportunities in only a couple of encounters. In those matches, he went wicketless and couldn’t make an impact with the bat as well. Carlos made his debut in the IPL after his 2016 World T20 heroics.</p>
<p>However, he has never been a regular fixture in the T20 tournament, having played only 16 matches in which he scored 181 runs and picked up 13 wickets. KKR can release him and instead rope in someone, who adds to their strength in bowling.</p>
<h3>2. Lockie Ferguson</h3>
<figure id="attachment_333551" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-333551" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-333551" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Lockie-Ferguson.jpg" alt="Lockie Ferguson" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-333551" class="wp-caption-text">Lockie Ferguson. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption></figure>
<p>Lockie Ferguson has been a genuine wicket-taker for New Zealand in international cricket. His exploits for the national colours also earned him a spot in the KKR team. He was listed in the auction at a price of INR 1 crore. The Knights along with Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) went after the pacer, but the former managed to bag his services at 1.60 crores. However, he didn’t shine in the tournament.</p>
<p>The speedster bowled with sheer pace and venom, but was taken to the cleaners. He wasn’t a regular fixture in the side, having played only five matches in which he picked up only a couple of wickets.</p>
<p>Moreover, he leaked runs at an alarming economy rate of 10.76. If KKR goes on to release him then the franchise has to go all out in the auction for another genuine fast-bowler in the setup.</p>
<h3>3. Robin Uthappa</h3>
<figure id="attachment_341512" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-341512" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-341512" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-341512" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS)</figcaption></figure>
<p>Robin Uthappa has been one of the proven match-winners for the Knight Riders over the last few seasons. Back in 2014, he was drafted into the KKR setup and quite immediately, it paid rich dividends. The veteran bagged the Orange Cap, having scored 660 runs at an average of 44 with five half-centuries. Nevertheless, in the last two seasons, Uthappa has tended to strain for form a bit.</p>
<p>In the 2018 edition, he could score at an average of 21.93. The last edition turned out to be a rough one. His strike-rate of 115.10 depicted the travails he had in the middle.</p>
<p>Uthappa also had to face the axe for a couple of matches and clearly found it tough to show fluency in his batting. The Knights would be better if they let go Uthappa and contemplate bringing in a fresh leg next time around.</p>

A lot of Knights' loopholes, both in the batting and bowling department, were exposed last time around.

3 Players KKR should axe ahead of IPL 2020

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had a rather forgettable season in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise,