KKR have problem of plenty with bat and not enough with ball

Injuries have hit KKR's bowlers hard while the positions of their batters need firming up

Sreshth Shah

Published: Mar 24, 2026, 2:38 AM (3 hrs ago)

10:25

IPL 2026: What is KKR's ideal XI?

Where Kolkata Knight Riders finished last year

Eighth out of ten teams, four points adrift of the top four. They lost seven of their 12 completed fixtures.

What's new in IPL 2026

There's no Andre Russell, for the first time since 2014, which amps up the pressure on Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh in the slog overs. Cameron Green, meanwhile, comes in for the highest pay package for an overseas player in IPL history, while Tim Seifert and Finn Allen promise a fresh opening pair. Rachin Ravindra adds to the New Zealand contingent and Rahul Tripathi returns for a second stint with KKR.

Related

Smart rookies at IPL 2026 - Veer, Allen, Kartik, Nabi, Ghazanfar, and...?

KKR's Akash Deep ruled out of IPL 2026

Matheesha Pathirana to miss early part of IPL 2026

Harshit Rana set to miss bulk of IPL season after knee surgery

KKR release Mustafizur from IPL 2026 squad following BCCI instructions

The late addition of Blessing Muzarabani helps paper over some of the cracks in their seam bowling, which has been wrecked by injuries and the strained relations between India and Bangladesh. That has left KKR with the season's most inexperienced seam-bowling unit. However, the team has been trialling a variety of Indian seamers to fill the gap, with announcements expected soon.

The biggest gains are in the backroom with Abhishek Nayar, Shane Watson and Russell part of a revamped support staff, but the old problem of too many top-order batters and finding the best batting position for their captain Ajinkya Rahane remains.

Likely best XII

1 and 2 Tim Seifert (wk)/Finn Allen/Rahul Tripathi, 3 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 4 Angkrish Raghuvanshi, 5 Cameron Green, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Ramandeep Singh, 8 Sunil Narine, 9 Vaibhav Arora, 10 Umran Malik, 11 Varun Chakravarthy, 12. Blessing Muzarabani/Kartik Tyagi/Anukul Roy

*denotes overseas pick

Big question

Watch out for

Two things: the overseas players KKR start off with, and who takes the gloves. Narine is a no-brainer and Green would likely be a starter too, which leaves KKR needing to decide between Seifert, Allen, Ravindra, Muzarabani, Rovman Powell and Matheesha Pathirana for the other two overseas spots. Those are difficult calls to make since each decision has knock-on effects on the shape of the rest of the XI.

There's also the decision of whether Seifert takes the gloves or Allen - who prefers not keeping, unless required - or whether Angkrish Raghuvanshi becomes the keeper, which he has been doing in domestic cricket in the lead-up to the IPL. If Raghuvanshi is wicketkeeper, it gives KKR immense flexibility.

Key stats

Seifert and Allen have form in India on their side, after finishing second and fifth on the T20 World Cup run-scoring charts. Seifert was also the fourth-highest run-scorer in T20s in 2025.

The spin of Narine and Varun Chakravarthy remains KKR's biggest weapon; across IPL 2024 and 2025, they had the best economy (7.74), best strike-rate (18.6) and best average (24.02) among spin-bowling units.

The reason KKR need to get their opening combination right is because IPL 2025 was disastrous. They were the only team last season without a half-century stand for the first wicket and the only team with a sub-300 contribution from the opening pair.

Who's out, who's in doubt?

Capped Indians Harshit Rana (knee) and Akash Deep (lower back) are not available, as is Bangladesh's Mustafizur Rahman (withdrawn). In Akash Deep's place, KKR have roped in Vidarbha's left-arm quick Saurabh Dubey.

Pathirana, the Sri Lankan slinger, is set to miss the first few games, and even then his participation would depend on how match-ready he is.

Sreshth Shah is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @sreshthx

Click here to read article