KKR must look beyond Andre Russell, Sunil Narine for greater good, feels IPL legend Yusuf Pathan

Former IPL legend Yusuf Pathan has dropped a bombshell relating to two of the biggest match-winners in KKR side – Andre Russell and Sunil Narine, saying for the greater good and looking into the future, the franchise must look beyond the Windies pair. These comments have come on the back of underwhelming performances from these two this season.

While Russell hasn’t been at his brutal best in IPL 2023, the former several-time purple cap winner Sunil Narine has looked out of rhythm too. Russell, unlike in the previous seasons, registered a few single-digit scores this time – having taken 218 runs in 12 outings with seven wickets, whereas off-spinner Narine has just picked seven scalps at an economy of 8.5.

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Ahead of the away clash against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday, speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Yusuf said the franchise must look at their performances this season or rather of previous seasons too and see how many matches they won for the side.

Considering both Narine and Russell got retained by the former two-time winners, Yusuf feels being so experienced, they haven’t lived up to the expectations and must face a few questions now.

"We should see how Narine and Russell have performed in the last three years, or how many match-winning performances they have put in with bat or ball," Yusuf told ESPNcricinfo.

"As a team, what do you think? If you want to look ahead to the future and go to the next level, then you should surely think about it, because if you look at the last few seasons, their performance hasn't been as good. As a senior player, there are expectations from you that you would get wickets or runs. If you are not able to do it, then you will have to face the questions," the former all-rounder added.

Sharing concerns over their form this season that saw KKR going down in their quest of reaching the playoffs, Yusuf said age has nothing to do with their mediocre run as most players of the same age are also playing and doing well.

"I don't think age should be a factor, because there are others of similar age who are still playing, and are performing well too. Plus, both of them play around the year. I feel if you are playing the entire year, then your body is in good shape,” Yusuf added.

The former IPL winner said he doesn’t know what’s wrong with them, but as others, he expects them to deliver and help the team win more matches.

"I am not able to figure out what is going wrong. These two are your match-winners, and when your match-winners don't perform, your team struggles. Perhaps fatigue could be a reason as they play the entire year. Having said that, everyone wants and expects them to do well,” Yusuf concluded.

Meanwhile, KKR is eighth on the points table with just five wins from 12 matches played, and their chances of breaking into top-four are bleak.