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The 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League is all set to kick off on March 22 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, where defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will start their campaign on Saturday, March 23. They will host the SunRisers Hyderabad in the third match of the tournament, on the first doubleheader of the season, at the Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata.
KKR had a good outing at the IPL 2024 mini-auction as they emptied their pockets to get the services of pace sensation Mitchell Starc. The Australian became the costliest player in the history of IPL after bagging a deal worth INR 24.75 crore.
While Starc will have a lot to prove in the upcoming season, KKR will be hopeful of getting the returns from their record-breaking investments. The side received a blow when Jason Roy pulled out of the tournament, but made amends by replacing him with Phil Salt.
Salt went unsold at the auctions and raised several eyebrows as he had been in terrific form with the bat. Three days before the auction, Salt notched up an unbeaten century against West Indies and followed it up with another ton a day after going unsold.
Hence, no teams showing interest in getting the Englishman on their side came as a shocker, but the powerful batter finally found a home with KKR for the upcoming season. With Salt’s inclusion, the team would be propelled to give a thought to their opening pair.
On that note, let us have a look at three opening combinations that KKR can try at the IPL 2024.
#3 Venkatesh Iyer and Rahmanullah Gurbaz
KKR might as well try the left-hand-right-hand combination of Venkatesh Iyer and Rahmanullah Gurbaz. The Kolkata-based franchise looked unsettled last year as they struggled to get the correct opening pair.
They tried plenty of combinations, but most of them failed as only one among the two batters managed to bat well. KKR need dependable batters who can give them a good start and build upon the partnership to take the innings long.
While Venkatesh Iyer proved to be the right fit at No. 3, he might have to move up the order if Shreyas Iyer makes his way back to the middle-order. Both Gurbaz and Venkatesh Iyer did well last season, but pulling off similar results together might prove to be a task.
#2 KS Bharat and Phil Salt
KKR might hand an opportunity to Srikar Bharat to bat alongside Phil Salt at the top of the order, which would provide Venkatesh Iyer with a chance to keep a tight hold of the top-order lineup while batting at No. 3. Notably, Venkatesh Iyer notched up a century batting in that slot.
If reports are to be believed, Shreyas Iyer might miss out on the initial few matches owing to the injury that he sustained during Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy final against Vidarbha. The KKR skipper might have to sit out if he fails to recover on time.
In that case, KKR might try a new opening pair in Bharat and Salt, with Venkatesh Iyer taking the onus of scoring runs at No. 3, like he did last year. If Salt gets a go-ahead, he might fill up the fourth overseas slot, resulting in Rahmanullah Gurbaz sitting out.
#1 Phil Salt and Venkatesh Iyer
In order to play Phil Salt in the XI, KKR will have to bench someone from their wealthy lot of overseas players. With Sunil Narine, Andre Russell and Mitchell Starc being the key foreign players, Gurbaz might make way for Salt in the XI.
Salt is a dependable opening batter and has proved the same while representing the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the previous edition. DC letting him go came as a huge shock, given what the Englishman can pull off at the top of the order.
Both Salt and Venkatesh are powerful strikers and have immense experience in tackling bowlers in the powerplay overs. With the former’s skills and the latter’s experience of playing that role, we might see fireworks on the field when the duo join hands.
KKR will be in a fix, and they will have a lot to ponder upon before finalizing an opening combination. They might as well experiment in the initial games before going ahead with the one that yields them the best results.
