"The batting order is totally beyond my understanding" - Aakash Chopra on KKR ahead of IPL 2025 clash vs PBKS

Former India player Aakash Chopra has questioned the Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) batting order ahead of their IPL 2025 clash against the Punjab Kings (PBKS). He noted that Ajinkya Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer struggled to force the pace in their previous game against the Gujarat Titans (GT).

KKR will host PBKS in Match 44 of IPL 2025 in Kolkata on Saturday, April 26. With six points from eight games, the defending champions are placed seventh on the points table and need a few consecutive wins to keep their playoff hopes alive.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener opined that KKR's 'bizarre' approach compromised their chase against GT.

"The batting order is totally beyond my understanding. You have played Rahmanullah Gurbaz. So you will play him again, and you should as well. However, it may sound very bizarre and strange that you were chasing a total close to 200 in the last match, you needed 10 or 11 runs per over, and you were 84/3 after 11 overs," he said (10:20).

Chopra pointed out that Rahane and Venkatesh's slow knocks left Andre Russell with an uphill task.

"You were done and dusted. Dwayne Bravo also said later that it isn't about Russell doing well or not, the truth is why 14 or 15 runs per over should be required when he comes to bat. So whoever plays at No. 3 and No. 4, which means Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer, needs to answer that question," he observed.

While Ajinkya Rahane scored 50 runs off 36 deliveries, Venkatesh Iyer consumed 19 balls for 14 runs in KKR's pursuit of a 199-run target against GT at the Eden Gardens on April 21. The home team eventually managed only 159/8, losing the game by 39 runs.

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"There is a strong match-up against him" - Aakash Chopra on Venkatesh Iyer ahead of KKR's IPL 2025 clash vs PBKS

Venkatesh Iyer has aggregated 135 runs at an average of 22.50 in eight innings in IPL 2025. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that KKR need to bat aggressively throughout their innings and highlighted that Venkatesh Iyer, who hasn't been among the runs lately, will be confronted with Marco Jansen in Saturday's game.

"If you have so much batting, which is good as well, you will have to keep hitting continuously. Venkatesh Iyer has had many innings where he hasn't done well. He hasn't done well against Punjab. Marco Jansen has dismissed him. So there is a strong match-up against him," he said (13:20).

The former KKR player added that the three-time champions will expect runs from Rinku Singh, Andre Russell and Ramandeep Singh. He also urged them to use Angkrish Raghuvanshi better.

"You hope that Rinku, Russell and Ramandeep will play well at some stage. Since Raghuvanshi is batting well, you might want to utilize him a little better, because in the last match, Raghuvanshi came when everyone had left. He was batting well. So Angkrish Raghuvanshi came late. He can be utilized better only if everyone keeps hitting," Chopra observed.

With 197 runs at an average of 39.40 in seven innings, Angkrish Raghuvanshi is KKR's second-highest run-getter in IPL 2025. He is behind only Ajinkya Rahane, who has amassed 271 runs at an average of 38.71 in eight innings.