Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had one of the strongest squads on paper heading into IPL 2020 with the likes of Andre Russell, Eoin Morgan, Sunil Narine, and Pat Cummins in their squad. However, the team failed to find consistency in the tournament and failed to make it to the playoffs despite coming close. KKR were in the race to make it top four till the final day of the league stages but saw Sunrisers Hyderabad knock them out of the competition.
Dinesh Karthik stepped down from captaincy midway through the season to hand over the reins to Eoin Morgan. KKR had 4 wins in seven games before Karthik’s decision to leave captaincy and needed to win another 4 games to make it to the playoffs out of the remaining seven matches. They failed to do so and the decision to appoint Morgan as the captain didn’t pay off.
KKR have now failed to qualify for the playoffs for two seasons in a row and will be looking to bounce back strongly next year. Ahead of the new season of IPL, former India batsman and commentator Aakash Chopra has suggested the two-time champions to let go of Morgan and make young Shubman Gill the captain of the side.
Chopra believes Morgan should not be retained if a mega auction is to take place ahead of IPL 2021 and that Gill can lead the side if provided proper support through the coaching staff. Chopra cited the example of Shreyas Iyer, who was appointed as Delhi Capitals’ captain in 2018 and has led them to playoffs in the last two seasons.
Chopra said KKR should retain three players – Gill, Varun Chakravarthy, and Andre Russell in case of a mega auction and should make Gill the skipper. Gill has been with KKR since the 2018 season and has scored 939 runs for the franchise in 41 games.
“Retain Shubman Gill, Varun Chakravarthy, and Andre Russell and make Gill the captain. The way Delhi Capitals did with Shreyas Iyer, gave him a strong coaching staff and groomed him for a better future. KKR should not let go of Gill if they feel he is captaincy material as he might get into some other team and in the coming years he might replicate what Rohit Sharma has done for Mumbai Indians,” said Chopra in a video on his YouTube channel.
“KKR have a very young and exciting talent in their hand in the form of Gill and they should make him the captain if they see leadership qualities in him. Not a great idea to make Eoin Morgan the captain and he should be released. He can be bought back through RTM if KKR want him,” he added.
A lot has been spoken about Gill’s promising future as he continues to make waves with his performances in the IPL. One of the brightest young prospects in the country, Gill has also earned his maiden Test and ODI call-ups for India and is in the process of cementing his spot in the national team. It remains to be seen if the youngster will be trusted with captaincy responsibilities at such a young age by the KKR management.
