3 min readApr 15, 2026 04:25 PM IST
After Kolkata Knight Riders’ latest defeat in the Indian Premier League’s 2026 season, the franchise is moored to the bottom of the IPL 2026 standings as the only side to not have won any game so far. While one of their matches was rained out, they have lost the remaining four games, including their match on Tuesday against Chennai Super Kings.
After the latest defeat to CSK by 32 runs, former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif pointed out the one defining mistake which he believes may be behind the slump of the three-time IPL champions.
“Probably the biggest mistake KKR made this season was to make Andre Russell the coach and not use him as all-rounder. The ploy of keeping him in the KKR dug out and not letting other franchises buy him at auction hasn’t worked,” Kaif wrote on X. “Isn’t he still a better all-rounder than the Rs 25 cr Cameron Green? The answer is obvious.”
There has been a lot of clamour about the role of Green in the KKR XI, particularly since Cricket Australia has not cleared him to bowl, and his numbers with the bat are below-par.
He has scored 56 runs from five innings in IPL 2026, with a 32 not out his best performance in a game.
Russell, on the other hand, retired from the IPL after he was released by the KKR management before the IPL auction. Since then, he has returned to the franchise as the “power coach” for the team.
Over his 13 seasons in the IPL, Russell scored 2651 runs in 140 matches at a whopping 174.18 strike rate.
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KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane fined Rs 12 lakh
Adding insult to injury after the defeat yesterday, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane was also fined Rs 12 lakh for the team’s slow over rate in their IPL match against Chennai.
“Kolkata Knight Riders Captain Ajinkya Rahane has been fined after his team maintained a slow over-rate during Match No. 22 of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 against Chennai Super Kings at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai,” said an IPL media advisory.
“As this was his team’s first offence of the season under Article 2.22 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct, which pertains to minimum over-rate offences, Rahane was fined INR 12 lakhs,” it added.
Kolkata Knight Riders will now take on Gujarat Titans next in Ahmedabad on Friday.
(With inputs from PTI)