IPL 2021: With a bowler short, batter Tim Seifert over all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan? KKR coach explains the move

KKR are fourth in the table, tied on points with PBKS and MI [Credits: KKR]

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) can attribute their five-wicket loss to the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Friday to having a bowler short. Head coach Brendon McCullum revealed that the inclusion of batter Tim Seifert was his “gut feel” while all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan will be considered for the next match.

With Andre Russell and Lockie Ferguson both out injured, KKR are struggling to bridge the gap between a lethal finisher with the bat and a quality fifth bowling option. The decision to give Seifert his IPL cap didn’t pay dividends as Eoin Morgan had to rely on part-timers Venkatesh Iyer and Nitish Rana to deliver four overs.

Brendon McCullum reasoned that the shuffling of the batting line-up sent Seifert further down the order, thus hampering his chances to make the most of the opportunity. But he exclaimed that Shakib, the No. 2 T20I all-rounder in the world, would be considered for Sunday’s clash.

“Shakib’s certainly available as well, we’ve got a lot of squad options. And you make calls when you are a coach, which you sort of got to go on a little bit of gut feel at times as well. Tim Seifert has been exceptional in the Caribbean, where he’s been playing for TKR in the CPL, and he did really well in the middle-order. We just felt like we need to strengthen that middle-order a little bit. And because we got off to a good start, it meant we shuffled Tim down a little bit and behind Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik.

“But yeah, Shakib’s always in the mix when you talk selection, because his skillsets – ability to bowl left-arm orthodox and also his batting, probably send him a bit more in the top 3 as a batter. But that certainly doesn’t mean he can’t slot in somewhere as well, so he’ll be in the mix for the game for sure when it comes to discussions on selection,” the KKR chief said in response to Sportskeeda’s question at the post-match press conference.

Chasing 166 for victory, PBKS skipper KL Rahul (67 off 55) played the sheet anchor role to help his side to a last-over finish. Both KKR and PBKS are now tied on 10 points each, with the Kolkata-based outfit in fourth place courtesy of a superior net run rate (NRR).

“With 2 overs to go, I still felt we had a chance in that game” – KKR's Brendon McCullum

Venkatesh Iyer (L) celebrates after removing KL Rahul in the last over [Credits: IPL]

With KL Rahul at the crease until the last over, the scales were heavily loaded in favor of PBKS. But Brendon McCullum admitted he believed KKR would defend 15 off the final two overs.

But after Shivam Mavi conceded 10 in the penultimate over, it became too much of an ask from Venkatesh Iyer, who was to bowl the final one. It seemed as if McCullum had put a heavy price tag on his gamble to field a team that was one bowler short. He further explained his decision, saying he felt KKR were a batter short in Tuesday’s three-wicket win over the Delhi Capitals (DC).

“When you take out a world-class all-rounder like Andre Russell, it’s always difficult to balance your side. I know we got home at Sharjah the other day, but we just felt a batter short in that circumstance. If we played the extra batter, we felt that we could utilise the bowling of both Venkatesh Iyer, who’s been superb for us, and also Nitish Rana, who is a very cagey bowler.

“In hindsight, when we got a 165 on the board, it would have been nice to have a bowler. But not to be on this occasion. I still felt we had a chance in that game, I really did. I think with two overs to go, Punjab Kings were exactly the same score that we were on in our first innings. So it was tough and go, small margins in this game, and today it didn’t go our way,” he elaborated.

KKR next play the bottom-placed SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Dubai, while Punjab will lock horns with the high-flying Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Sharjah – both matches are scheduled for Sunday (September 3).