IPL 2017: 5 reasons why Sunil Narine should be dropped by KKR
Sunil Narine has been one of the key members of the Kolkata Knight Riders team since 2012. He has helped the team win the Indian Premier League twice and has been by far one of the most consistent bowlers of the tournament.
However, since 2015, his performances have dropped significantly. This year, Narine is nowhere close to his best. Although it is still too early in the season and a bowler needs more time to prove his worth in the shortest format of the game, it could be time for the KKR management to think twice before including Narine in the starting XI.
Here are five reasons why he should be dropped from the line-up.
#5 Squad balance
For every franchise in the IPL, it is essential to select the four foreign players and the seven Indian players in a way that proper balance is maintained. The eventual winner of a match is often decided even before it starts and selecting the right mix is of utmost importance.
Going in with Narine in the line-up no doubt makes the bowling stronger but what about the batting? After Chris Lynn’s injury, KKR’s batting appears a little depleted. They have world class openers and Manish Pandey and Yusuf Pathan in the middle-order but that stability is still missing.
Dropping Narine would mean including Kuldeep Yadav and Piyush Chawla as the two spinners, both of whom are better batsmen than Narine. It would also mean that KKR would be able to draft in an extra foreigner. Along with Trent Boult, Chris Woakes and Lynn’s replacement (Colin De Grandhomme?), Shakib Al Hasan as the fourth foreigner will add the much-needed balance to the team.