4 matches, 3 defeats, 1 point thanks to rain:Misfiring Rinku, Varun; inexperienced pace attack, what’s wrong with KKR this season?

Four matches, three losses and one point gained thanks to rain. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) surely would not have hoped for their IPL 2026 campaign to start this way. After four games, KKR sit in the ninth spot on the points table. The three-time champions have largely looked beleaguered so far in the tournament and the picture ahead looks quite grim. So what has gone wrong for the Knight Riders? The team, coached by Abhishek Nayar, has some of the biggest names in cricket as part of their support staff, the likes of which include Dwayne Bravo (mentor), Shane Watson (assistant coach) and Tim Southee (bowling coach). KKR also had a pretty good auction, roping in some of the most-sought-after players in the form of Cameron Green and Matheesha Pathirana. But what has gone wrong for KKR? Let’s explore. Poor form of key players On paper, the Knight Riders look like one of the most formidable outfits. Explosive batting, quality all-rounders and a lethal bowling attack. But the reality has been far different. Injuries have struck badly this season, and it cannot be avoided if one has to talk about what has gone wrong with the team this time. Rinku Singh and Varun Chakaravarthy, two of India’s T20 World Cup-winning stars, have failed to make any sort of impact for KKR so far in IPL 2026. While Varun has continued to leak runs left, right and centre from the T20 World Cup, Rinku has not looked the finisher few years ago when he smashed five sixes in an over to steal a win for KKR in Ahmedabad. Finn Allen, one of the most destructive batters in KKR’s arsenal, has blown hot and cold in this campaign. Allen has shown signs of his explosive batting on three occasions, but KKR would want him to contribute more than just the quickfire 30s and 40s. Although striking at 205.12, Allen has scored just 80 runs in four games. Cameron Green has carried the heavy price of a ₹25.2 crore price tag and so far, has failed to live up to expectations. The Australian all-rounder has made 56 runs in four matches while taking one wicket thus far. And it wasn’t until the match against Lucknow Super Giants that he had bowled. Also read: RR claim victory in ‘Battle-Royal’ vs RCB by 6 wickets: Sooryavanshi’s 78-run carnage, Jurel’s calm 81* script Rajasthan’s win Inexperienced bowling attack After the IPL auction last year, KKR possessed one of the most balanced pace attacks. Matheesha Pathirana was expected to lead the attack, which possesses several quality Indian stars, the likes of which include Harshit Rana, Akash Deep and Vaibhav Arora. The pace bench strength also looked promising, with Kartik Tyagi and Umran Malik. Not to forget Mustafizur Rahman, who was released by KKR upon the BCCI’s instructions, a move that triggered a massive controversy earlier this year. Injuries have hit KKR’s pace attack hard. Harshit and Akash have been ruled out. Pathirana’s availability is still unclear, and it has been Arora, Tyagi and Muzarabani who have done much of the heavy lifting in the pace department. The issue thus has been poor form and a lack of experience. Muzarabani is competing in his maiden IPL, Tyagi has played four IPL matches in a season for the first time since 2021, and Arora has struggled with his form. KKR’s pace bowlers have struggled big time in the absence of a serial wicket-taker, and thus, this hapless show so far. Middle over batting woes Across the three completed matches that KKR have played so far in this season, the Knight Riders have had real problems while batting in the middle order. KKR did relatively well in their opening match against the Mumbai Indians, scoring 89 runs in the middle overs. However, it was against the Sunrisers Hyderabad that the cracks in the middle-overs were exposed. After finishing the powerplay at 74/3, KKR lost their way in the middle, scoring 85 runs while losing five wickets. And in their latest defeat against the Lucknow Super Giants, KKR scored just 59 runs in the middle-overs while losing three wickets, something that really set them back in pursuit of 200 if not more. Captaincy issues? Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy has also been one of the biggest talking points this season. The experienced cricketer is no stranger when it comes to donning the leader’s hat, but some of his decisions have come under the scanner. Bowling an under-fire Varun Chakaravarthy inside the powerplay vs SRH and later, choosing to bat first in overcast conditions vs the Punjab Kings (PBKS) have been some of them so far. The call to bat first turned horribly wrong when KKR lost two wickets in one over vs PBKS before rain came to the Knight Riders’ rescue. Moreover, there have been suggestions that KKR have under-utilised Sunil Narine’s batting thus far, with the experienced all-rounder not opening anymore. Rahane also had hit out at critics questioning his strike rate in an explosive press conference. Safe to say that KKR have failed to usher in a smooth transition from Shreyas Iyer to Ajinkya Rahane when it comes to captaincy.