IPL 2018: Kolkata Knight Riders Best possible playing XI

The Kolkata Knight Riders have been one of the most explosive teams in the Indian Premier League ever since the inception of the tournament. The team has managed to rope in several prominent names over the years including the likes of Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Brett Lee and Jacques Kallis. Even in the recently concluded auction, they managed to sign some prolific performers.

The franchise exhausted their entire budget and composed a squad of 18 players. While there are some international names, they have also invested in a good number of domestic players who are either in good form or have performed significantly in the erstwhile editions of the T20 tournament.

That said, here is the best possible XI the Knight Riders can put on paper.

Openers – (Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine) 

Both Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine were part of the Kolkata Knight Riders setup and played some scintillating knocks for the franchise. Quite deservingly, they were duly rewarded by the Shah Rukh Khan-owned franchise. While Narine was retained during the IPL retention ceremony in December, Lynn was snapped for a whopping 9.6 crores.

Both are again speculated to open the innings in the upcoming season of the tournament. Both employ an aggressive approach and are hard to stop when in full flow. They are also a left-right batting combination, which works in favour of them ahead of the main event in April.

Middle-order – (Robin Uthappa, Shubman Gill, Dinesh Karthik (C & wk), Nitish Rana)

The middle-order has a mix of youth and experience, which might work wonders for the Knight Riders. The franchise used the Right to Match (RTM) on Robin Uthappa who has been a stalwart for the Knights over the years. Dinesh Karthik’s inclusion will also boost their batting and most importantly they now have a specialist wicket-keeper ahead of the upcoming season.

Also, he has experience of leading Tamil Nadu which makes him a strong contender for the leader’s role. Shubman Gill and Nitish Rana have also impressed over the last one year. Gill has been prime form in the ongoing Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand. On the other hand, Nitish Rana grabbed the headlines with some sterling knocks for the Mumbai Indians in the previous edition of the IPL.

All-rounder – (Andre Russell)

Andre Russell is an integral element of the Knight Riders setup and has shown efficiency in all departments of the game. However, he was banned for a year following doping charges and he didn’t take part in KKR’s previous campaign. However, the ban was lifted in January and therefore he was available to play the eleventh season.

The Knight Riders team-management hence retained him in the IPL retention ceremony. He has been outstanding for the Knight Riders and most importantly a game-changer. The Knight Riders will again be hoping for the Windies all-rounder to fire on all cylinders.

Bowlers – (Mitchell Starc, Piyush Chawla, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav)

Several eyebrows were raised when the Knight Riders used the Right to Match (RTM) card on Piyush Chawla, the Uttar Pradesh leg-break bowler. However, for the reasons that he is a wrist-spinner and has been pivotal to Knight Riders’ campaign over the years, the leggie deserved to find a spot in the Kolkata Knight Riders team. Mitchell Starc, Australia’s pace spearhead, has been KKR’s most significant picks among bowlers. The left-arm seamer has also played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

However, parted ways with the franchise ahead of their previous season. Kuldeep Yadav has been exceptional for India in limited-overs cricket. Recently, he also snapped a hat-trick against Australia at the Eden Gardens. The left-arm chinaman bowler has played for the Knight Riders for many seasons and has bowled immaculately for the franchise.

Kamlesh Nagarkoti, India’s new fast-bowling sensation, is most likely to partner Mitchell Starc with the new ball. He has shown tremendous potential with the cherry and has cranked up his pace to almost 150kmph in the ongoing Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand. Meanwhile, Sunil Narine’s prowess with the ball also needs to come to the fore for KKR to soar above expectations in the upcoming season.

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