Why is Andre Russell not playing: Kolkata Knight Riders will have to chase a total in the first knockout match of IPL 2021.
During the Eliminator match of the ongoing 14th season of the Indian Premier League between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders in Sharjah, Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli has won the toss and chose to bat.
“We are going to bat first, looks like a great wicket, nice and hard. It gets tougher to bat here in Sharjah as the game progresses,” Kohli told Star Sports at the toss.
“A youngster steps up and wins you a game against a top side like Delhi [Capitals]. Very happy for KS [Srikar Bharat]. This is what this tournament is all about. Meetings have been pretty short and sharp. We have the ability to win games, nothing changes this being an Eliminator.”
Being asked about the changes made to their Playing XI, Kohli confirmed that they will be taking the field with the same XI at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium tonight.
Why is Andre Russell not playing vs RCB?
A “confident” Kolkata Knight Riders captain Eoin Morgan was unperturbed about being asked to field first in a knockout match. Much like Royal Challengers, Knight Riders have also refrained from making any changes to their squad.
“We would have loved to bowl first anyways. The toss doesn’t bother us. We are feeling confident within the group, we are starting to come good as a team. We are playing with the same team,” Morgan told Star Sports at the toss.
We go with an unchanged playing XI for the Eliminator! 👊#RCBvKKR #KKR #AmiKKR #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/3daXxn7T6w
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) October 11, 2021
With Morgan, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine and Lockie Ferguson being KKR’s four overseas players for this match, injured all-rounder Andre Russell continues to sit out and recover from an injury.
