IPL 9: Need two more wins to guarantee our place in the Play Offs: Kallis

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Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Jaques Kallis has warned the team against complacency . Image Source: Xtra Time

Internet Desk: Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Jaques Kallis have heaped praises on Andre Russell for pulling off an improbable win against Kings XI Punjab on Wednesday. The Jamaican bowled the two time former champions to victory against the Kings at the Eden Gardens yesterday. Kallis feel the inclusion of Russell has lent a lot of balance to the squad last couple of seasons.

“Andre’s been magnificent for us the last couple of years. He’s really come up leaps and bounds as a cricketer. He’s very destructive at the death as we have seen many times. I think he really did well under pressure with the task to defend 12 in the last over. He really stood up and made it count.”

Kallis has warned the team against complacency and said they had slipped out of contention for playoff from a similar position in the Indian Premier League T20 cricket tournament last year. He feel securing 16 points will guarantee a place in the qualifiers. According to the South African, the prime objective for him and his team will be to qualify for the play offs.

“It’s been a tough three weeks on the road. It makes it lot easier for us. But we still have to play good cricket. We can’t just back and expect that we will win at home. It’s nice to have that cushion. Hopefully we can carry that forward. Probably you need eight wins that means two more for us. Certainly that will be our first objective. Obviously it becomes easier when you finish among top two. Certainly our main objective will be to get into playoffs first and then we will think of finishing among top two.”

The Knight Riders currently top the IPL table with 12 points from 9 matches. According to the KKR head coach, the team has taken a lot of positives from the recent wins and is confident of carrying on the momentum. “The positive of course is we’re top of the table. We’re sitting pretty in a good position. I suppose some of the negatives might be we’re pretty similar to this last year, and then sort of relaxed towards the end. We are aware of that and hopefully we have learnt from it. We’re working hard. The way the guy’s gel together getting a balanced side, there’s a lot of positives going forward” Kallis told reporters on the sidelines of ‘Knight Golf’ a charity initiative at RCGC here today.

Knight Riders mystery bowler Sunil Narine had to sit out in the match against Kings XI Punjab. But Kallis is hopeful that the spinner will be fit ahead of the match against Gujarat Lions.

“He hurt his bowling finger in warm up against previous game. He wasn’t fit. We will wait and see. Hopefully he will be ready by Sunday” commented Kallis.
Kolkata Knight Riders team owner Shahrukh Khan was present with his son AbRam at the Eden Gardens on Wednesday to witness the win over Punjab. On being asked what does the actor brings to the team, Kallis said, “We always feel he’s with us. Win or lose he’s always sending messages. We have learnt a lot from him. He’s so humble even after what he’s achieved. He lifts the guys when he’s at the ground. We’re certainly lucky to have someone like him around.”

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KKR Cricketers took some time out from their daily schedule & played Golf together.

The Kolkata Knight Riders cricketers took time off from cricket and were involved in a game of cricket. An avid golfer, Kallis in a lighter vein said he found the sport a tad bit frustrating compared to that of cricket.

“It certainly is… If I look back to my cricket career, you hit the cricket ball travelling at 150kph roughly where you want to. And the golf ball standing still, you can’t hit where you want to. It’s very frustrating indeed. They say golf is a good way to relax but I’m not really convinced about that” signed off  Kallis.