Kolkata Knight Riders are set to open their IPL 2023 campaign against Punjab Kings on April 1. The franchise has appointed Nitish Rana as the regular skipper Shreyas Iyer's presence in the T20 League is subject to fitness. KKR who clinched the titles in 2012 and 2014, will want to bag their third title in the upcoming edition.
Before all the action begins, let's look at the SWOT analysis of Kolkata Knight Riders
KKR Strength:
Kolkata have a lethal bowling unit. When it comes to their bowling attack, from Venkatesh Iyer to Sunil Narine, the team can opt for various combinations. Even players like Nitish Rana can also be used as bowling options. To counter them, the opponents will have to show fierce batting.
KKR Weakness:
The team's batting will be highly dependent on the top order. As Shreyas Iyer's return in the season is doubtful, Nitish Rana, N Jagdeesan, and Rinku Singh will have to play the role of stabilizing the innings in most of the matches. If they fail to do so, they will be in a difficult situation as the onus will be on the middle order.
KKR Opportunities:
The squad will need star player Andre Russell to perform consistently in order to go further in the race for the title. It will be a big opportunity for Rahmanullah Gurbaz to showcase his skills and contribute towards winning the match
KKR Threats:
If there are any other injury concerns in the team, especially for batters then that can pose threat to the team.
Kolkata Knight Riders squad:
Nitish Rana (captain), Vaibhav Arora, Lockie Ferguson, Harshit Rana, Venkatesh Iyer, N Jagadeesan, Kulwant Khejroliya, Litton Das, Mandeep Singh, Sunil Narine, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Shakib Al Hasan, Rinku Singh, Tim Southee, Suyash Sharma, Shardul Thakur, Varun Chakravarthy, David Wiese, Umesh Yadav, Shreyas Iyer (subject to fitness)
