West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell could bat at No.3 for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2020, said KKR’s mentor David Hussey.
KKR’s coach Brendon McCullum and mentor David Hussey are wondering over the idea of bringing Russell in at number 3 so that he can have enough balls to play with and use his maximum hitting powers.
KKR’s team mentor David Hussey said that with enough ball to play with, Russell could even score double hundred in this format.
“If it benefits the team and helps us win games of cricket, why not? If that means Andre Russell comes in at three and bats 60 balls, he might actually make a double hundred. Anything can happen with Dre Russ,” Hussey said in a news conference.
Last year, Russell scored 510 runs in 13 innings at an average of 56.66 and also picked up 11 wickets.
“A fantastic player, he is probably almost the heartbeat of the team as well. “We’ve actually got really a well-balanced team… Anyone can bat in any different position. But if it benefits the team, why not, why can’t he bat up the list”, said former Australian cricketer by pointing him like a heartbeat of Kolkata knight Riders.
He also mentioned how the addition of England’s 50-over World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan will help their team and skipper Dinesh Karthik.
“He is a huge name, World Cup-winning captain, captain of England for a long time, classy player, classy performer. “He is also going to be a great ally for Dinesh Karthik, maybe fielding in the ring and talking to the bowlers with our captain behind the stumps.”
“He is a very cool, calm and collected person. He’s also going to be very heavy in the middle order controlling things. I do expect them to both have a really good relationship on and off the field and I think it’s going to go a long way to having a cool and calm head to winning many games during a very tight tournament,” Hussey added.
Kolkata Knight Riders will be first seen playing against defending champions Mumbai Indians at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on September 23
