Virender Sehwag blames the fixed batting order of the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders for their knockout and cites LSG and Rishabh Pant as examples.
Kolkata Knight Riders finished their season in 8th spot with 12 points, and it was a season to forget for the defending champions as their batting record this season was below average compared to the rest of the teams.
While chasing 279 last night against Sunrisers Hyderabad, KKR lost their top order inside the powerplay and half their side within the first 10 overs. This has been their template all season, as they stuck to a fixed batting line-up from game 1.
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Sehwag Criticizes KKR’s Rigid Batting Strategy
Speaking about the same on Cricbuzz, Virender Sehwag took a direct dig at KKR management and Ajinkya Rahane regarding their strategy while chasing a huge total. He specifically blamed the KKR captain, who batted at number 3 throughout the season, for coming ahead of the big hitters when they were needed the most.
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He then cited Rishabh Pant's approach as captain, explaining how Pant sent his best hitters ahead of him and how LSG's flexible batting order benefited them.
“It is not written anywhere that a captain has to bat in the top three. Look at Pant, he was sending players ahead of him, because they were in form and LSG took advantage of that,” Sehwag said.
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He also criticized the coaching staff for failing to make proactive changes and praised teams like CSK for adapting their order mid-season.
“KKR could have done the same. This was the team management and the coaching staff’s responsibility. See, even CSK did it against GT—Shivam Dube and Dewald Brevis came up in the order. They changed that up from the recent matches,” he added.
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Rahane Admits Batting Unit Failed Under Pressure
Ajinkya Rahane, addressing the media after the defeat to SRH, acknowledged the team's batting struggles. He said the unit was under pressure all season and failed to perform collectively, though he felt the bowlers had done their job well.
“Where we faltered slightly was at the batting end. As a batting unit, collectively, we couldn’t do well. I thought bowlers did well throughout the season,” Rahane said
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