"I got back inside and went into shower with my cricket clothes on" - Andre Russell on what he did after being dismissed in IPL 2018 Qualifier 2
Andre Russell recently shared an anecdote from the night when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lost the all-important Qualifier 2 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2018. The all-rounder, who was distraught after KKR's 14-run loss, divulged that he went into the shower with his cricket clothes on after being dismissed by Rashid Khan at a crucial stage.
Chasing 175 for victory, KKR were cruising at 93-2 at one point. However, a middle-order collapse saw them finish on 160-9, thus handing SRH a win in the knockout tie.
"When I got out to Rashid Khan, I got back inside and went into shower with my cricket clothes on, My shoes and everything was wet. I was just there with the water running all over me because (the loss meant) it was basically the last game (of the season)," Andre Russell said in a video shared by KKR on YouTube.
Andre Russell was caught at first slip for just 3. The destructive all-rounder had walked into bat when KKR needed 57 off 33 balls. In hindsight, the Caribbean star believes his dismissal was a result of his overthinking.
"I didn't get out being Dre Russ. I started to overthink the game. That was actually a ball I could have put away, and that's the moment where I knew I had messed up. If I was still batting at the back end, we would have won comfortably," a dejected Andre Russell said.
Andre Russell now realizes that he would have been embarrassed had anyone seen him taking a shower with his clothes on. The all-rounder said he learned a lesson that day - to keep the bowler on the back foot by playing some attacking strokes.
"I was just disappointed with myself. That's why I went into the shower with everything wet. I was happy that no one saw me that way because it was embarrassing. People would have been like - 'Are you losing it?' I realised (from that incident that) if a bowler feels you are scared to lift your bat, they are gonna be all over you. You have to back off a bowler by playing shots sometimes," the West Indies all-rounder added.
Andre Russell's performance in IPL 2021
KKR had a torrid time in the now-postponed IPL 2021, winning just two games out of seven. Andre Russell had a relatively quiet season, but he did show what he is capable of doing both with the bat and ball at times.
The 33-year-old scored 163 runs across seven games at an average of 27.16, while his strike rate was 155.3. Russell's best performance with the bat (54 off 22) came against CSK; he almost took KKR to an improbable win while chasing 221.
On the bowling front, he managed a career-best IPL figure of 5-15 against the Mumbai Indians. Although Russell picked up seven wickets in IPL 2021, his economy of 11.4 was on the higher side.