The Hindu : Sport : Super Kings takes on distraught KKR

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Super Kings takes on distraught KKR

Penultimate chance for McCullum’s men to put an end to their nightmare

— Photo: AP

DOWN…AND OUT: Skipper Brendon McCullum reflects the plight of Kolkata Knight Riders which has been laid low not only by the opposition but also by its own inadequacies on the field.

Centurion: The search for an elusive win is likely to continue for the bruised and battered Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as it comes against the rampaging Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in an Indian Premier League match here on Monday.

It is a nightmare that is refusing to end for Kolkata, which has earned the dubious distinction of stumbling to eight successive defeats after losing a final-over thriller to Deccan Chargers on Saturday.

A team divided

Brendon McCullum’s unimaginative captaincy has only added to Kolkata’s problems, which are aplenty.

The team is a divided house, its top players are struggling to conjure up decent performances and it seems unlikely that Kolkata’s freefall will stop anytime soon.

The Shah Rukh Khan-owned outfit had been in disarray much before the tournament started and its woes only got compounded by repeated on-field failures.

The arrival of Australian David Hussey was expected to boost Kolkata’s sagging fortunes and although he has proved to be quite a swashbuckler with the bat, his solo efforts have not been enough to galvanise a side so deep in trouble.

Sourav Ganguly, despite being among runs, has not been quick enough for a Twenty20 match. The bowlers have not got decent targets to defend most of the time and on occasions they have got, Ishant Sharma & Co. has been badly let down by poor fielding.

Hayden has been a hit

In contrast, except for a stunning loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore, Chennai has been on a roll and has one man to thank for most of the hard work.

Retired Australian opener Matthew Hayden, the tournament’s leading scorer with five half-centuries under his belt, has been simply unstoppable.

Hayden and an equally rampaging Suresh Raina have been the mainstays of Chennai’s batting and with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni also coming into his own after a slow start, the team’s line-up looks solid.

Strong bowling

Bowling too is strong with star Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan leading the attack.

Given Kolkata’s miserable run, the contest looks like a cakewalk for Chennai but the tournament-laggard would be hoping to put an end to its nightmare in case Dhoni’s men get complacent. — PTI

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