This poor streak of form might put up a question mark on their IPL 2026 retention chances.
Andre Russell and Sunil Narine, two of the mainstays of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), are finding it hard to regain their rhythm in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2025. The veteran pair has put up a sub-par performance so far, while representing KKR’s sister franchise, the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), in the ongoing edition of the T20 league. This continued poor streak of form might put up a question mark on their IPL 2026 retention chances.
The all-rounder Russell, who is known for smashing some astonishing out-of-the-ground sixes and also scalping a few crucial wickets for the team, has failed to shine in both of these departments in the latest fixtures. Following his recent retirement from international cricket, the 37-year-old has finished the eight group-stage matches for just 61 runs at a strike rate of 135.55, which is the lowest in his 12-year CPL career so far.
Moreover, this includes a highest score of 27 not out against the Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW). However, Russell’s bowling skills have been a bit more effective than his average batting show, as the player scalped nine wickets at a high economy rate of 10.47.
Previously, he had also endured a similar form in two of the latest 20-over leagues of the world, the Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025 and the IPL 2025. Coming on the back of an average outing with only 167 runs and eight wickets in 13 IPL fixtures, he also managed to put up just 126 runs, but bagged 10 wickets in nine MLC matches for the Los Angeles Knight Riders (LAKR).
Another veteran all-rounder, Narine, usually bamboozles the batters with a variety of spin tricks he has up his sleeves. He has mostly snared more or the same number of wickets as his match appearances in the CPL history, barring the inaugural season in 2013, followed by 2018 and 2025. Though Narine carried on with his economical bowling show at an impressive rate of 5.62, the 37-year-old has managed only six scalps in 10 group-stage matches of this edition.
The all-rounder could also contribute with some blazing cameos to boost the team’s total. After lighting up the IPL 2024 with 488 runs in 15 matches at a blistering strike rate of 180.74, which acted as one of the prime aspects of KKR’s title-winning campaign, he also followed it up with 246 runs at a fiery strike rate of 170.83. But the CPL 2025 has not seen much of his fireworks with the bat as Narine has scored just five runs in his limited opportunities in two matches.
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The Caribbean duo of Russell and Narine has been representing KKR in the IPL for more than a decade. They have been a part of the franchise’s core group and have also joined the team in some of the other T20 leagues around the globe. But the sudden decline in form and the hardships to come out of it have raised an uncertainty over the pair’s IPL future.
But considering the faith shown by the franchise in their reliable West Indies all-rounder pair, KKR might not release them ahead of the IPL 2026 auction. Furthermore, with 12 points in 10 fixtures, TKR is almost confirmed to seal a place in the CPL 2025 playoffs. Russell and Narine would want to make a turnaround of their recent abysmal stats in the knockout stage to power the most successful CPL team to a record fifth title.
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