IPL 2020: 'There is only one – the relationship between Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik,' Brad Hogg speaks about KKR's flaws
Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) spinner Brad Hogg feels the tension between star all-rounder Andre Russell and captain Dinesh Karthik can pose a threat to the team’s performance in the upcoming IPL starting September 19.
“What is the one flaw in this team? There is only one – the relationship between Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik. We can’t have Andre Russell come out in the media after the game and say we didn’t make the right decisions. That’s got to be done behind closed doors,” Hogg said in the latest episode of his YouTube show ‘Hogg’s Vlog’.
The comment can be traced back to IPL 2019 when the West Indian all-rounder, while addressing a press conference, questioned Karthik’s decision to make him bat lower down the order. In an interview on the ‘RK Show’ a couple of months back, the KKR skipper revealed that he looked at the positive side of things and sorted things out with Russell after the incident.
Hogg, however, opined that KKR head coach Brendon McCullum should take note of the dressing atmosphere and not let things go out of hand.
“Brendon McCullum has to make sure he rectifies that relationship, gets on top of it early, because, if there is a little bit of disharmony in this line-up, it can have ripple effect in a bio-secure environment, and things can get out of hand very quickly,” Hogg added.
Sunil Narine is a complete package in the IPL
The left-arm unorthodox spinner was all praise for the versatility that T20 specialist Sunil Narine brings into any side.
“Yes, we know he (Sunil Narine) can bowl a little bit of off spin, but it’s his batting, versatility, that adds potency in this line-up. Because, he can open the batting, bat in the middle overs, also play some big shorts at the end to finish off the innings,” Hogg, who has taken 180 wickets for Australia, added.
The West Indian all-rounder can not only bat but also bowl at any stage of the innings. Narine is the eighth-highest wicket-taker – 122 wickets in 110 matches – in IPL history and also boasts the second-best batting strike rate of 168.34 in the tournament.