IPL 2018: How Dinesh Karthik's team may lineup in the tournament

Among all the sides in the past 10 seasons of the IPL, one of the sides that has gained phenomenal attention is the Kolkata Knight Riders. While their journey did not begin smoothly, the arrival of Gautam Gambhir as a leader changed their fortunes and they have now become one of the successful franchises in the IPL.

Ahead of the 11th edition of the cash-rich tournament, the two-time winners picked a relatively inexperienced squad and are aiming for “Change and Continuity”. While they have parted ways with Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik has been chosen to continue the legacy as a part of the change while Robbin Uthappa, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine have a daunting task to perform to maintain the continuity.

With only 28 days left, let us have a look at the probable 11 of the Knights who will battle for glory in this IPL.

#1 Chris Lynn

Fans would be hoping for Lynn-sanity once again

The 10th edition of the IPL saw some serious power hitting from the flamboyant Australian batsman Chris Lynn at the top of the order. Having scored 295 runs at an impressive strike rate over 180, he has been retained this year too and the KKR think tank will be expecting more from him.

Apart from being a phenomenal stroke player, he is athletic and agile to contribute to the team. Although he is a bit injury prone and currently he is battling against a shoulder injury, the fans will be hoping for his comeback before the IPL season.

If Chris Lynn is ruled out owing to shoulder injury he suffered in the T20I tri-series involving Australia, England, and New Zealand, he is likely to be replaced by Cameron-Delport. The 28-year-old left-handed South African all-rounder has proved his worth in all parts of the world with a strike rate of over 130 and will be keen to showcase his talent in the upcoming IPL. He has been in stellar form in the PSL and is a good replacement at the top order.

#2 Sunil Narine

Can Narine give quick starts like last year?

The previous editions of IPL have seen Sunil Narine emerging as one of the most economic mystery bowlers.

However, in the 10th edition, fans saw a different Sunil Narine with the bat as he was asked to open the innings. He was unorthodox, free-flowing and gave KKR a quick start while chasing. He boasts of an amazing strike rate of over 140 in T20s and the KKR think tank would be keen to use his batting abilities this year as well.

Although he went through a major transformation in his bowling action, still with over 300 wickets in T20s at an impressive economy of just 5.82, he will still be the go-to man for the skipper in the bowling department.

#3 Robin Uthappa

Uthappa needs to take the responsibility to anchor the ship

At No.3, KKR may go with Robbin Uthappa who is a seasoned campaigner in IPL and can anchor the innings according to the situation. With Gautam Gambhir leaving for Delhi Daredevils, the walking assassin has a lot to offer and is expected to fill into the shoes of Gambhir in the batting department.

The Karnataka born player has ups and downs in performance with Saurashtra in Ranji trophy this season battling with injuries. But with additional responsibility and experience of more than 5000 runs at a strike rate of over 150 by his side, the KKR vice-captain must step out to anchor his team towards glory.

#4 Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill was one of the finds of the U19 World Cup played earlier this year

The Knight Riders management has heavily relied on youth talents in this year’s auction and this brings Shubman Gill at no.4 to repay their faith.

He is young, talented and is currently in good form with a wide range of shots in his armory. Not only he has impressed the pundits in the U-19 world cup, he has been among the runs in the domestic One Day tournaments too. His well crafted knock of 102 not out against the Pakistan U-19 team and 123 not out against Karnataka this season only goes to prove his worth as a promising talent.

At KKR, he will get the chance to work with one of the greatest all-rounders of the game, Jacques Kallis and he will surely love to improve his skills. He can play as per the situation and hence a strong contender at the middle order. The Punjab lad will be worth to watch out for!

#5 Dinesh Karthik

Karthik needs to lead from the front

Amidst all the speculations, the Knight Riders' CEO Mr. Venky Mysore announced Dinesh Karthik to lead the side.The new skipper holds the middle order and comes at No.5. Having previously led Tamil Nadu in the domestic circuit and Delhi Daredevils in the IPL, Karthik has a huge task ahead to continue the legacy and create a brand of his own.

He has been impressive with the bat in the last two seasons especially and would look to carry forward the baton left behind.The 32-year-old wicket keeper batsman has been recently batting well in the One Day Internationals for the country and has experience of playing in the IPL with over 4000 runs and strike rate in excess of 130 under his kitty.

Known for his cheeky shot selection, he will be entrusted with the keeping duties and the massive crowd at the Eden Gardens will look forward to recreating history under him.

#6 Nitish Rana

Nitish Rana played an important role for Mumbai Indians last season

The last season saw the emergence of this silent finisher for the Mumbai Indians. KKR picked up the Delhi batsman this year and will rely on his batting abilities at the end. He was consistent with the bat last season with 333 runs under his name. He has continued to impress in the Ranji trophy this year and eventually became the highest run scorer for the side.

The 24-year-old left-handed batsman batted with a good strike rate of around 136 and was highly appreciated for his calm demeanor while taking his side towards the finish line. The KKR management would be expecting him to play steady innings and take the team home at difficult times.

#7 Andre Russell

More muscle Russell this year

One of the fiercest hitters of the game, Andre Russell comes in at number 7. The West Indian all-rounder has been a proven successful campaigner for the KKR side and hence was retained by the side. He boasts of an impressive career strike rate of over 173 and also quite effective in bowling in the death over. He is one of the most exciting Caribbean talents and has experience to play across all parts of the globe.

Whenever KKR will look for quick runs, they will look for Russell to shift gears and achieve that. Currently, struggling with a minor injury, the team will pray for his quick recovery to watch him out in action. Already regarded as a utility player, he can help the KKR team with the much needed adrenaline of the T20 cricket.

One of the greatest qualities of this KKR lineup is their ability to interchange positions within themselves. In such a case, one cannot rule out Russell being pushed up the order to accelerate the scoring rate if and when it is required.

#8 Piyush Chawla

Chawla is economic and is handy lower down the order

The KKR franchise has always been reliant on spin attack and they have retained their experienced orthodox leg spinner in Piyush Chawla through "Right To Match" card.

He is experienced, economic with over 100 T20 wickets under his name and most importantly can score some quick runs down the order. He has been in good form recently in the domestic arena for Gujarat and has overall bowling strike rate under 20 in the T20s.

Moreover, he can score some runs down the order. The 29-year-old UP born bowler is under-rated yet effective and this fits him into the team combination perfectly.

#9. Kamlesh-Nagarkoti: The 18-year-old Rajasthan born pacer stole the limelight when he clocked in excess of 140 kph regularly in the recently concluded U-19 World cup.He ended up getting 11 wickets in the tournament and was praised for his constant raw pace in the New Zealand pitches. Rated highly by the experts, he is an extremely agile fielder and will look to grab this opportunity to gain experiences of competitive senior cricket. Considering the nature of the pitch at Eden Gardens to be seam friendly, KKR team management will be trying to exploit the raw pace of this youth speed-star. Already a promising young talent, Kamlesh can only learn and improve from here to contribute to the cause of the team.

#9 Kamlesh Nagarkoti

Nagarkoti has the ability to constantly clock speeds in excess of 140 kmph

The 18-year-old Rajasthan born pacer stole the limelight when he clocked in excess of 140 kph regularly in the recently concluded U-19 World cup. He ended up getting 11 wickets in the tournament and was praised for his constant raw pace in the New Zealand pitches. Rated highly by the experts, he is an extremely agile fielder and will look to grab this opportunity to gain experiences of competitive senior cricket.

Considering the nature of the pitch at Eden Gardens to be seam friendly, KKR team management will be trying to exploit the raw pace of this youth speed-star. Already a promising young talent, Nagarkoti can only learn and improve from here to contribute to the cause of the team.

#10 Kuldeep Yadav

The man with a golden arm

The left-arm Chinaman rose to the international cricket arena after his decent performances in the IPL last season. Kuldeep Yadav now features regularly for the Indian team in the One Day International cricket and finished with 17 scalps from 6 matches in India's recent tour of South Africa.

Known for his attacking mentality in bowling and venomous variations of leg spin, he will surely head the spin attack for the knights this season. The youngster never gets afraid even if he is hit for consecutive sixes. With over 60 wickets in T20s at an impressive strike rate of 17.3 and experience in bowling even on seaming tracks, this 23-year-old wrist spinner is surely one of the highly rated talents in this upcoming IPL.

#11 Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc will spearhead the KKR bowling attack

Last but not the least, is the tall 28 year old Australian pace sensation, Mitchell Starc. The Australian was one of the pick buys for the KKR this season and is rated as one of the deadly fast bowlers in the world. He can trouble the batsmen with lethal bounce as well as variations in pace.The tall young left-arm speed-star will look to utilize the conditions of the Eden gardens to provide the team some initial quick wickets and disciplined bowling at the death overs.

He has been impressive with the ball in the recently concluded Ashes and the current Australian tour to South Africa. Already he has proved his worth in Test cricket as well as in T20s with Royal Challengers Bangalore, he can turn out to be the knight in shining armor for the Kolkata based franchise this year.