In a massive turnaround, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be playing their first Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 final in seven years. On the other end, it is the usual suspects Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who proved that their performance in the last season was just an aberration. While there have been a few match-winners on both the teams, it is their captains who have been under the focus for their bold decision-making and poor batting performances.
Dhoni shows glimpses of greatness
It would not be a cliché to say that Dhoni turned back the clock to seal the finals berth with his whirlwind six-ball 18 cameo including one six and three fours. However, it has been a disastrous season for Dhoni with the bat scoring just 114 runs from 15 games and a strike rate of 106.54. His average is 16.28 only because he has remained not out in four innings. The extent of his poor run can be ascertained from the fact that his season-best score came in the previous game where he scored a match-winning 18. These are his worst batting statistics since the inaugural season. Also, this is the second time he has not scored a half-century in an IPL season.
Morgan yet to catch a break
England’s limited-overs skipper has scored 15 more runs than Dhoni this season but his numbers in the second phase of IPL look even worse. In eight innings of the UAE leg, Morgan has registered only one double-digit score. Also, it is not like he bats down the order like Dhoni. On most occasions, he has come out to bat at no.4 or 5 and left the ground without making an impact. For example, in the qualifier against DC, Morgan was supposed to be the cool head amidst the chaos in death overs but he bagged a three-ball duck to make matters worse. It will be interesting to see where Morgan bats in the IPL 2021 final. The 35-year-old has scored 129 runs from 16 games at an average of 11.72 and a strike rate of 98.47. In the first phase, there was only one inning in which he made an impact with the bat scoring an unbeaten 47 in a low-scoring run chase against Punjab Kings. Comparing to his last season’s numbers, the southpaw has looked a pale shadow of himself.
