IPL 2019: 5 players KKR must get in the trade window

The Kolkata Knight Riders did not fare very well in the IPL Players Auction 2018 and many experts were of the opinion that their squad lacked depth. They went all out to secure the contracts of Chris Lynn and Mitchell Starc by shelling out 9.6 crores and 9.4 crores respectively after retaining the services of Andre Russell and Sunil Narine ahead of the auction, which meant they spent 40 crores on just four players! Splurging money on foreign talent usually results in a lack of squad depth as it is the Indian players who form the crux of the team.

Furthermore, when Mitchell Starc was ruled out after picking up an injury in the build up to the tournament, the team management had a lot of problems on their plate. Another interesting decision that the KKR think-tank took was to let go of skipper Gautam Gambhir, who led them to two IPL titles. Though it was initially met with mixed reactions, the appointment of Dinesh Karthik as captain served the team well. KKR went on to finish third in IPL 2018.

The Kolkata franchise must make maximum use of the trading window before they sit down at the auction table later this year. They must bolster their squad so as to make sure they have the right players for various situations. The aim will be to build a well-balanced squad that can take the team two steps further than their third-place finish last season.

Another factor that the think tank must consider while building their squad is that the IPL might partly or fully be held at a foreign venue in 2019 because of the general elections in India. Here are 5 players who will bolster the KKR squad and help them win their third IPL title.

Mohammad Nabi

Mohammad Nabi is an off-spinning all-rounder from Afghanistan

In the previous edition of the IPL, KKR lacked a quality off-spinner and a power hitter in the middle order. Both the aforementioned problems will be solved by the inclusion of the Afghan-international, Mohammad Nabi.

Nabi is a very handy bowler in the middle overs and is adept at curtailing the flow of runs. He focuses on the traditional off-spinner rather than trying too many variations and losing his line and length, which is the key to his success. He has 67 wickets from 65 T20 internationals at a splendid bowling average of 24.25.

He is a power hitter and can score quickly in the middle overs. Furthermore, he has represented SRH in two seasons of the IPL and played only 5 games overall. He will be looking for more game time and would welcome a move to KKR.

Manzoor Dar

Manzoor Dar in a training session for KXIP

Manzoor Dar is a power hitting all-rounder from Jammu & Kashmir who was a part of the Kings XI Punjab squad in IPL 2018. He did not play a single game for the Punjab franchise last season and would welcome more game time. KKR are in need of a power hitting middle order batsman, preferably Indian and Manzoor Dar is the perfect fit. Dar has an average of 30.83 and a strike rate of 145.66 in the 20 over format of the game.

He is also a handy off-spinner with an excellent bowling average of 18.33. Manzoor would be a perfect bridge between the top order and the lower middle order at KKR. The Knight Riders often found themselves reeling after the loss of two quick wickets as they had only Dinesh Karthik and Andre Russell left in their arsenal. The inclusion of Dar could work wonders for KKR.

Deepak Chahar

Deepak Chahar can swing the new ball both ways

The Kolkata Knight Riders are in need of a bowler who can swing the ball both ways right from the outset and trouble the opening batsmen in the opposition. Deepak Chahar is someone who can solve this problem for KKR. Though he went for runs in the death overs, he bowled very well with the new ball and the batsmen in the opposition found him hard to get away. He represented CSK in IPL 2018, picking up 10 wickets in 12 games.

The Kolkata franchise has a fairly decent pace attack comprising of Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson, Tom Curran and the under-19 young guns, Shivam Mavi and Kamlesh Nagarkoti but none of them are out and outswing bowlers. Furthermore, they are all extremely injury prone. The addition of Chahar will give KKR a strong Indian swing bowling option and boost the pace battery of KKR.

Pawan Negi

If bad comes to worse, Pawan Negi can replace Sunil Narine at KKR

An Indian back up for the mystery spinner Sunil Narine would serve KKR well and Pawan Negi would be the ideal choice for the same. Narine has been hauled up for his action a couple of times and KKR would do well to be prepared for the worst. Negi is also known for his big hitting abilities and is the ideal replacement for Narine.

Pawan is a handy off-spinner with 31 wickets in 43 games in the IPL. He also has a more than decent batting strike rate of 128.51. Negi played only 2 games for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the previous edition of the IPL and would like a little more game time. The inclusion of Pawan Negi would bolster both the batting order and the bowling line-up for the Kolkata franchise.

Chris Jordan

Chris Jordan is a death overs specialist for England

KKR spent a whopping 9.4 crores on Mitchell Starc in the IPL 2018 players auction and when he was ruled out because of an injury in the build-up to the tournament, KKR were left reeling. KKR lacks a death overs specialist who can bowl yorker after yorker and contain the batsmen in the opposition. If it so happens that Starc is ruled out again, KKR would need someone to fill in for him and Chris Jordan has the ability to do so.

Chris joined the RCB camp as a replacement for the Australian quick in IPL 9 and will be familiar with the role he needs to play for his team in the absence of Starc. Jordan has established himself as a death overs specialist for the England cricket team but is yet to set the IPL on fire with his bowling prowess. Chris played just one game for SRH in IPL 2018 and would welcome the prospect of more game time at KKR.