IPL 2021: "Everything changed but Eoin Morgan's form didn't change" - Aakash Chopra
Former Team India cricketer Aakash Chopra took a sly dig at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Eoin Morgan for his dismal run with the bat in the second phase of IPL 2021.
The Knight Riders struggled mostly due to a feeble middle order, with Morgan failing to lead the side from the front. Despite a strong start in the run chase in the IPL 2021 final against Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata lost momentum to fall 27 runs short owing to a weak middle order.
Assessing KKR's run in IPL 2021, Aakash Chopra believes two senior cricketers, Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik, failed to live up to their standards. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the cricketer-turned-commentator said:
"Although everything changed in the team, from their mindset to their approach, Morgan's bad form did not change till the very last match. Even Dinesh Karthik's form was missing. He even dropped catches.
"Even MS Dhoni has won one match for CSK but Morgan being the current player and captain of a World Cup winning team should have won KKR a game."
Eoin Morgan managed only 133 runs from 17 games in IPL 2021 at an average of 11.08, while Dinesh Karthik accumulated 223 runs from 17 games at a strike rate of 131.17.
"Sunil Narine has been a blessing in disguise" - Aakash Chopra
Sunil Narine was the showstopper for KKR in the second phase of IPL 2021. Aakash Chopra lauded the Trinidadian spinner as well as Kolkata's bowling unit, who were integral to the franchise's turnaround in the UAE.
"The blessing in disguise has been Sunil Narine. He became brilliant. Lockie Ferguson has been exceptional. Varun Chakravarthy picked up from where he left," Aakash Chopra concluded.
Sunil Narine finished the campaign with 16 wickets under his belt from 14 games at an economy rate of 6.44.
He will now head back to the West Indies and watch the T20 World Cup 2021 from home after being left out of the squad for the global T20 event.