Sunil Narine has struggled to deliver at the top-order for Kolkata Knight Riders so far in IPL 2025. In two out of three games that he has played so far, he has registered single-digit scores. The Caribbean all-rounder has so far failed to replicate his performance from the previous editions of the IPL, thus turning out to be a liability for the team at the top of the order.
Why Narine should not open for KKR
Narine’s scores in IPL 2025 read – 44, 0 and 7. He has hardly managed to stitch together any partnership with his fellow opener Quinton de Kock. This is very much unlike the Narine from IPL 2024 who enjoyed tremendous success – both individually and collectively – with Phil Salt.
With Narine misfiring, the pressure shifts to the rest of the batting order. While KKR have no shortage of batters as such, it is high time the team decides to move the West Indies star back to the lower order. At least for a few games.
No better option than Rahane
The obvious option to replace Narine as opener is none other than skipper Ajinkya Rahane. The veteran has been in fine touch off late. He has scores of 56, 18, 11 and 38 from four games in IPL 2025. Besides, The Mumbai batter had a sensational Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) season in 2024. He finished with 469 runs from 9 matches, with 5 half-centuries and averaging 58.62. The best part is all his knocks came as an opening batter for Mumbai.
| Mat | Runs | HS | Ave | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189 | 4765 | 105* | 30.15 | 124.05 |
Rahane displayed stellar consistency at the top-order for Mumbai in the tournament. He registered scores of 37, 98, 84, 95, 22, DNB, 68, 52, 13. Further, he has been in good form off-late, amassing good amount of runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Ranji Trophy as well.
Hence, it would be wise for KKR to capitalize on his form and allow him to replicate his SMAT heroics in IPL 2025.
