Ex-KKR CEO claims Eoin Morgan was 'protected' from Wasim Akram's bowling in IPL 2012

Cricket analyst and presenter Joy Bhattacharya was earlier associated with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the franchise's director. Quite recently, Bhattacharya recalled an incident from their title-winning campaign in the IPL 2012 which involved Eoin Morgan and the then bowling coach, former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram. The ex-KKR head claimed that during the IPL 2012 season, the current England captain was protected from facing Wasim Akram by the KKR team management.

Also Read | Liam Plunkett Takes Subtle Dig At Eoin Morgan For Treating Him Badly Post 2019 WC Win

Former KKR chief praises Wasim Akram

While interacting with the 'Face of the IPL' Gaurav Kapur on a podcast of Oaktree Sports, Joy Bhattacharya stated that during a net session of KKR from the IPL 2012, the then bowling coach Wasim Akram was stopped by a top member of the team management to bowl to the woefully out-of-form batsman Eoin Morgan in the nets. The ex-KKR head revealed that Trevor Bayliss, who was head coach at the time, had told him about the same. Bayliss claimed that had Akram bowled to Eoin Morgan, it would have not done his confidence any good as the ‘Sultan of Swing’ was as potent as he was his prime even though he was 45 back then and just took 3 steps to bowl a bit fast post his retirement in 2003.

Bhattacharya, along with Gaurav Kapur, then went on to admire Akram’s abilities with the ball and praised the legendary Pakistani pacer.

Former KKR Team Director reveals details about “protected” Eoin Morgan, watch video

Also Read | Steve Smith Turns 31: Rajasthan Royals Use KKR Owner's Famous Song For Birthday Video

Wasim Akram’s IPL alliance with Gautam Gambhir’s KKR

Wasim Akram was appointed as the bowling coach of KKR in IPL 2010 and the legendary pacer remained attached to the role till the 2016 season. It was earlier reported that former Indian and KKR captain Sourav Ganguly was responsible for Wasim Akram’s signing into the franchise. While Ganguly was released by the franchise prior to the IPL 2011, Wasim Akram maintained his KKR association by forming a coach-captain partnership with Gautam Gambhir. His stint turned out to be a successful one as KKR lifted the coveted IPL trophy twice during his tenure, i.e. in 2012 and 2014.

Wasim Akram’s career at a glance

Wasim Akram made his international debut in 1984 and was a crucial member of the victorious Pakistani line-up at the 1992 World Cup. In 2003, the left-arm pacer became the first bowler in the world to bag 500 wickets in ODIs and is currently the second-highest wicket-taker of the format. Apart from claiming another 414 wickets in Tests, Akram was also a quality lower-order batsman, who scored over 5,000 international runs across 104 Tests and 356 ODIs.

Also Read | KKR CEO Says Getting Players Ready Might Be Challenging, Fears They Might Have Gone 'cold'

Also Read | IPL Does Not Have The Same Quality Of Fast Bowlers As PSL; Wasim Akram Makes Bold Claim