IPL 2021: Brendon McCullum defends not playing Andre Russell – Kolkata Knight Riders were completely outplayed in the IPL 2021 final, as CSK clinched their fourth title in Dubai on Friday night. Chasing 193 to win, KKR fell way short in the final, succumbing to a 27-run defeat, despite a good start from Venkatesh Iyer. Eoin Morgan and Co. missed the explosiveness of Andre Rusell, and McCullum believes that while the West Indian did work hard to be back, it was too big a risk to play him in the IPL 2021 final.
IPL 2021: Brendon Mccullum defends biggest blunder, that costed KKR IPL title, check details
Speaking in his press conference after KKR’s IPL 2021 final defeat, head coach Brendon McCullum said that it was “too much of a risk” to play Andre Russell against CSK, who had picked up a grade 2 hamstring tear earlier in the tournament. The former New Zealand captain said, “Look, Andre, he obviously had a hamstring tear earlier on in the competition. He worked unbelievably hard to try and get himself available. There was still a risk there, and it was a risk that I felt in a final, we just couldn’t afford to take.”
McCullum added, “Such is the nature of hamstrings, you’re just never really sure whether they’re going to be fully healed or not. It was just such a big risk. Look, in the end, we decided to go for the guys who had done so well for us to get us into the final. I’m really proud of all their achievements. It’s a shame we fell short, but we were outplayed by a very good CSK side today.”
IPL 2021: Brendon Mccullum defends biggest blunder, that costed KKR IPL title, check details
Andre Russell played only three of ten games for Knight Riders in the UAE leg, with his last one on September 26, nearly three weeks before the IPL 2021 final. Both David Hussey and Eoin Morgan had previously hinted at the West Indian recovering in time for the final, but KKR stuck to Shakib Al Hasan for the summit clash, with Narine used a floater to chip in with cameos. However, both did not contribute much and Eoin Morgan’s poor form compounded matters as KKR lost eight wickets for just 34 runs in the middle overs.
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