Captain Shreyas Iyer did more than soul searching after Kolkata Knight Riders' fifth successive defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. He issued the clarion call to teammates, pleading the two-time IPL champions to "stick together, play some fearless cricket, not be conservative".
But playing only "fearless cricket" may not be enough for the two-time champions to finish top four and make the IPL 2022 playoffs. With three wins in nine matches, Kolkata Night Riders are eighth in the points table. And they have five matches to change the fortunes.
Kolkata Knight Riders, like the two other struggling sides in IPL 2022, fellow 'big three' teams -- Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings -- have struggled to find a settled XI. In fact, against Delhi Capitals on Thursday, Kolkata Knight Riders made three changes, and yet none of the new faces managed to make a mark.
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With such instability, Kolkata Knight Riders will find it very tough to mount a credible title challenge let alone making the playoffs. The same goes for the other two teams in the so-called 'Big Three' -- five-time winners Mumbai Indians and defending champions Chennai Super Kings.
Rohit Sharma's Mumbai Indians are yet to win a match and in their previous eight matches, they have tried almost every possible combination, from fielding two overseas players to trying out untested players in trying circumstances in the name of grooming.
After their defeat this season, Rohit conceded that they "just went with the combination that would be ideal. We chose the best from whatever we had."
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Well, Shreyas Iyer also has the same prognosis.
"A lot of chopping and changing is happening, it's been difficult to set up the right combination, with all injuries not helping as well," Iyer said Thursday. But he did implore that they need "forget about the past, start fresh and back your instinct".
No matter how mechanical or formulaic it sounds, starting afresh, with a hope to "come back stronger," is what teams need when the chips are down. Chennai Super Kings' new captain Ravindra Jadeja must have relayed that message to his teammates after their sixth defeat on Monday.
The four-time champions, with two wins in eight matches, will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad on May 1. By the end of the match, Ravindra Jadeja will know for sure how well has communicated with the team.
Kolkata Knight Riders' remaining fixtures are against - Rajasthan Royals on May 2, Lucknow Super Giants on May 7, Mumbai Indians on May 9, Sunrisers Hyderabad on May 14 and Lucknow Super Giants on May 18.
If Kolkata Knight Riders win all their remaining five matches, they will have 16 points, which should be enough to make the cut.
Check the updated IPL 2022 points table and how the teams have fared so far:
As things stand now, Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals have won seven and six matches each from their respective eight matches, while Sunrisers Hyderabad and Lucknow Super Giants have five wins each from the same number of outings.
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Lucknow Super Giants take on Punjab Kings in match 42 of IPL 2022 tonight in Pune.
The KL Rahul-led Giants, like fellow debutants Gujarat Titans have shown title credentials with some fine performances. A big win tonight will help Lucknow Super Giants move to second place.
For Punjab Kings, it's crunch time. Mayank Agarwal & Co can't afford further slip-ups. They are seventh, just ahead of the underfiring 'Big Three'.
