“It was a smart decision to include Umesh in the playing XI” - Mohammad Kaif analyzes Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy debut for KKR 

Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif praised Shreyas Iyer’s decision to include Umesh Yadav in the Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) playing XI for their IPL 2022 encounter against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Saturday.

The match against CSK marked Shreyas’ debut as captain for KKR. His stint got off to a positive start as the Kolkata franchise defeated Chennai by six wickets at the Wankhede Stadium.

Analyzing the 27-year-old’s performance as captain in his first game for KKR, Kaif praised him for giving pacer Yadav a chance to play. Speaking on SK Straight Talk, the former cricketer opined:

“Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy was good. It was a smart decision to include Umesh in the playing XI. He was with the team before but wasn’t getting opportunities to feature in the XI. But Shreyas fit him in nicely. He played Shivam Mavi as well and utilized the spinners (Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine) and Andre Russell adeptly.”

The 41-year-old was particularly impressed with the new KKR captain’s aggressive moves on the field. He elaborated:

“His captaincy was aggressive. There was a slip early on, where Ruturaj Gaikwad was caught brilliantly by Nitish Rana. When there is some movement in the pitch, the fielding side must attack. Shreyas Iyer did exactly that when Gaikwad was batting and it showed his attacking mindset. Overall, he was impressive in his first match as captain.”

Before shifting to the Kolkata franchise, Shreyas led the Delhi Capitals (DC) to their first-ever IPL final appearance during the 2020 edition.

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“It was a trademark innings from Rahane” – Mohammad Kaif on KKR opener

After the bowlers restricted CSK to 131 for 5, Ajinkya Rahane came in and scored a fluent 44 to set up the chase for Kolkata. Praising the 33-year-old’s knock, Kaif said:

“It was a trademark innings from Rahane. The score wasn’t a big one, so he could take his time and focus on his timing. Wankhede is his home ground. Whenever there is a bit of bounce on the surface, he does well and he batted really nicely today (Saturday).”

The former India batter added that there were quite a few positives for KKR. He also pointed out that players are likely to get more chances with two more teams in the IPL. According to Kaif, the same benefited KKR against CSK. He explained:

“Rahane, Umesh and Sheldon Jackson, remember they haven’t been playing regularly in the IPL for the last 2-3 years. Umesh Yadav was with Delhi Capitals but did not get much of an opportunity. Rahane also played only a couple of games. Because two teams have come in, the players have been divided and their value has increased. They will get more chances now and they grabbed the opportunity really well (against CSK).”

The Kolkata franchise will next take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on March 30.