KKR’s Andre Russell has had a poor start to Indian Premier League 2023, scoring only 39 runs in four matches. Former India cricketer Rohan Gavaskar has suggested that KKR should have considered opening with Russell given his struggles against leg-spinners.
Responding to the suggestion, former India opener Virender Sehwag said that he had given the same suggestion to Russell back in 2018 and even found success in CPL. “He opened in CPL, scored a century in one of the games and messaged me,” Sehwag said. However, he was not sure whether Russell can do the same with a team like KKR. “He can take such risks and calls of opening the batting. But can he do the same in KKR? This will have to be decided by the coaching staff and captain,” Sehwag said.
Sehwag also gave the example of Virat Kohli, stating that Russell can finish more matches if he starts opening the batting and gets success. “Who is the chase master? Virat Kohli. Where does he bat for RCB? Doesn’t he finish matches? Andre Russell can do that too. But KKR will have to take that risk. Will he be able to survive the new ball? If yes, then try him as an opener,” he added.
Russell has been dismissed by a leg-spinner in his last three innings, leading to speculation about his ability to handle spin. Sehwag acknowledged that Russell has no problems against fast bowlers but spinners can get him into trouble. “If he gets set while opening the batting then he will get a lot more balls to play and he can become even more dangerous,” Sehwag said.
Rohan Gavaskar ponders the reason
Rohan Gavaskar had suggested that Russell’s leg injury might have prevented him from opening. However, Sehwag did not think that was a concern. “He wouldn’t have had to do a lot of running and could have used the field restrictions to his credit,” Gavaskar said.
Sehwag had suggested to Russell back in 2018 to open in domestic cricket and gain success, which the West Indies all-rounder did in Caribbean Premier League. “If you get success as an opener then you will become a million-dollar boy,” Sehwag had told Russell.
Virender Sehwag’s suggestion to KKR remains to be seen, but it is clear that Russell’s struggles with spinners could be alleviated by batting higher up the order.
