Kolkata, April 2 Ahead of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) home clash against the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Eden Gardens on Tuesday, mentor Dwayne Bravo talked about what he believes to be the reason behind teams failing to breach the 200-run mark.
Heading into the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, after a record-breaking 2024 season, fans were expecting teams to go all guns blazing again during the 18th edition of the tournament, but have failed to achieve success using that approach. The former West Indies all-rounder was asked whether the bowlers catching on is the high-risk approach that is no longer working out for the batters.
“It's a combination of both. For us as a bowler group, especially the kind of conversation we have and the message that I send, is that you have to be smarter. To survive now, you have to be smarter. So you have to try to outthink the batter and be brave. And again, like I said, you will see that with our bowling group.
“The one-off game, the team will get off and that's okay, and again, I think the batsmen are also not having that value on the wicket anymore. (10:30) A bit reckless because they think it's flat pitches. A lot of teams have batted longer, so the value for batsmanship is no longer there.
"That's why you see the scores have now started to drop a bit because bowlers are getting smarter and they're trying to use their strengths more. And batsmen just have no value on the wicket anymore. So I guess it's a combination of both,” said Bravo in the pre-game conference.
There has also been a lot of talk surrounding the home-ground advantage or the lack thereof during the season. Bravo provided a unique take on the same by claiming the pitches are not the advantage whilst playing at home but rather it is the fans who provide the extra punch.
“Whether the pitch is slow, whether it's turning, whether it's not turning, for me, my language will always be to the players, make the necessary assessment, make the necessary adjustment, and play according to the conditions. What helps us with the home advantage is the fans.
“I think that is more important than how the pitch plays. I will not really comment much about pitches, but more than the process, and once the fans are there into the game and cheering us on, that makes a difference,” he added.
Both KKR and SRH, the finalists of the 2024 edition, have won only one of their opening three games this season and will hope to get their season on track starting Thursday.
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