Knight Riders are set to kickstart their IPL 2024 campaign with a home date against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday (March 23).
The Knight Riders have a settled squad at the moment, which has been bolstered with the arrival of Mitchell Starc, who was bought for a record price of Rs. 24.75 crore in the auction. Jason Roy and Gus Atkinson withdrew from the IPL and they have been replaced by Phil Salt and Dushmantha Chameera respectively.
In the overseas arsenal of KKR, two mainstays Andre Russell and Sunil Narine will be an indispensable part of the team. The Caribbean duo’s association with KKR is for more than a decade and they are set to play a key role again this season.
Over the years, many stalwarts of the game across the globe have donned the KKR colours. It all started with a blitzkrieg of Brendon McCullum in 2008, an innings in the very first IPL match which announced the blockbuster arrival of the IPL. Jack Kallis, David Hussey, Pat Cummins, Shakib Al Hasan, Ajantha Mendis, Brett Lee, Eoin Morgan, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Ryan ten Doeschate – the list is huge if we consider the star overseas players who have shown their magic for the Knight Riders.
But there are a few players, who haven’t lived up to the billing and their KKR career was mostly an underwhelming one. In fact, in history, there are only six overseas players who have managed to play just one match for KKR. Here is all of them-
Mashrafe Mortaza (Bangladesh) – IPL 2009
Mashrafe Mortaza, the former Bangladesh captain, was bought by KKR in IPL 2009. He played just a solitary match for KKR and his outing was a poor one. Mortaza conceded 21 runs in the last over and KKR lost a match against Deccan Chargers. The Knights finished at the bottom of the table last season and Mortaza didn’t play an IPL match after that.
Azhar Mahmood (England) – IPL 2015
Azhar Mahmood played his international cricket for Pakistan, but was picked up by KKR after he switched it to British Nationality in 2015. Mahmood played only a single match for the Knights and largely disappointed. He scored 6 runs with the bat and couldn’t pick any wicket with the ball.
Darren Bravo (West Indies) – IPL 2017
West Indies’ stylish batter Darren Bravo was part of the Knights squad in IPL 2017. He played one match and scored 6 unbeaten runs for them. He also hit a winning boundary against Rising Pune Supergiant but that was it for him in the IPL.
Joe Denly (England) – IPL 2019
The signing of Joe Denly was nothing short of a surprise among the KKR faithful. The England player’s IPL career lasted just one ball as he was knocked over in the first and last ball that he faced in the IPL. The match was against Delhi Capitals in Kolkata.
Chris Green (Australia) – IPL 2020
Chris Green was bought by KKR to bolster their spin department. The IPL got postponed for COVID-19 and it was then moved to UAE latter that year. Green played his solitary match against Mumbai Indians, where he bowled three overs and conceded 24 runs without any success.
Litton Das (Bangladesh) – IPL 2023
KKR bought Litton Das for IPL 2023, a decision which was hugely celebrated by Bangladeshi fans, but the batter played only one match for the Knights. He scored 4 runs in the match and then subsequently went back to his country citing personal reasons. He was released for this year and was not picked by any team in the auction.
Sauradeep Ash Mykhel
source: mykhel.com