The keeper-opener position is an area of concern for the defending champions
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be a worried team as they set out to defend their Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2025. The problem is at the very beginning of their batting order with the openers and on top of that an overseas spot and also the key position of the wicketkeeper.
Afghanistan’s keeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz has been part of KKR since his debut IPL season in 2023 and has scored 289 runs in 13 matches for the IPL holders. However, his underwhelming form off late will be a concern for Chandrakant Pandit’s team as they gear up to face Royal Challengers Bengaluru on March 22.
Gurbaz hasn’t featured much in IPL 2024 due to the opening slots filled in by Sunil Narine and Phil Salt. He is yet to make a strong case for more playing time in the 2025 edition.
In the intra-squad practice match that took place on Saturday, Gurbaz was out for a paltry score of six in Andre Russell’s bowling.
Being out for a good ball shouldn’t be a cause of panic, but Gurbaz missed a plain full toss from Russell. There was little deception from the big West Indian, but someone of Gurbaz’s quality should’ve played the floater if not sending it over the boundary line.
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Gurbaz hasn’t done well in franchise leagues in the build up to the IPL 2025 as he managed just two 40-plus scores in the recent edition of SA20. He scored a total of 151 runs from six innings for Pretoria Capitals.
He only played three innings in the International League T20 (ILT20) for Desert Vipers and scored just seven runs in total, including just five runs as an opener in the final against Dubai Capitals.
Apart from the recent slump of Gurbaz on one side, there were concerns for another overseas star as well. Quinton de Kock, who was also bought for the keeper and opening slot, is going through a bad patch of his own. The INR 3.6 crore KKR recruit didn’t do well in the SA20 for Durban’s Super Giants as an opener, scoring only 159 runs from eight innings at a poor strike rate of 115.
However, the Proteas put all doubts over his form to rest with a blistering knock of 52 off just 22 balls in the intra-squad game today.
KKR’s third choice for the keeper-opener position is Karnataka’s Luvnith Sisodia who has been excellent for Gulbarga Mystics in the Maharaja T20 Trophy by scoring 314 runs from 11 matches at a strike rate of 147.
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