IPL 2020: KKR CEO feels Sunil Narine nearly matches up to Andre Russell as all-rounder

Universally acknowledged as one of the most celebrated players in the shortest format of cricket, West Indian all-rounder Andre Russell has over the years, become a mainstay for the Kolkata Knight Riders' line-up in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Russell is widely considered as the undisputed go-to all-rounder for the Dinesh Karthik-led KKR squad.  However, Venky Mysore, the CEO of the Kolkata Knight Riders, drew a comparison between Andre Russell and his West Indian teammate Sunil Narine in an interview on the RK Show recently.  

The KKR CEO shared the opinion that although Russell could very well be 'Michael Jordan of T20 cricket' according to the team's head coach Brendon McCullum, yet for the supporters of Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunil Narine is quite close to matching up with the hard-hitter as far as all-round abilities are concerned. 

Narine, who is currently playing for the KKR-owned Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) in the CPL 2020, not only had emerged as one of the most menacing spinners to grace the game back in 2012, but has also played a significant role with the bat for the Kolkata Knight Riders in recent years. The Trinidadian has been a part of both of the 2012 and 2014 title-winning campaigns for the franchise. Narine has impressed the fans with his batting prowess as well after getting the opportunity to open the innings for the side.

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Andre Russell vs Sunil Narine: Stats comparison of KKR players ahead of IPL 2020

When it comes to Andre Russell, the burly Jamaican has a whopping strike rate of 182.12 and has amassed over a thousand runs in the T20 format last year. He took the IPL 2019 by storm despite KKR finishing 5th as he ended up scoring a mammoth 510 runs in the season, with a strike rate of over 200. He also emerged as the Most Valuable Player of the season as he also scalped 11 wickets during the course of the season.

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Narine, on the other hand, was crowned the Most Valuable Player in the 2018 season wherein he garnered 357 runs at a strike rate of 184.79. The 32-year-old has taken everyone by surprise with his pinch-hitting at the top of the order for the Kolkata Knight Riders side. He is most likely to retain his opening slot in the upcoming IPL 2020 season, despite the presence of ex-Rajasthan Royals' opener Rahul Tripathi, Shubman Gill and potentially tough competition from England's young dynamite Tom Banton in the KKR squad.

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Tallawahs' Russell vs TKR's Narine in the CPL 2020 

Currently, both Russell and Narine are a part of the ongoing CPL 2020. Interestingly, the mystery spinner is a part of the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), which shows the amount of faith the owners have in him as a match-winner. For TKR, the southpaw has opened the batting in 3 matches and scored half-centuries in the first two matches, while picking up 4 wickets so far. On the other hand, Russell found some form in the CPL 2020 much to the delight of the KKR owners, in his last game by scoring a 37-ball unbeaten 52.

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With the IPL 2020 scheduled to start on the 19th September, it will be interesting to see how the franchise's top two all-rounders perform in the new UAE conditions. The CPL 2020 final is scheduled to get over by the 10th of September.

CPL 2020 live streaming and telecast details

The live telecast of the CPL 2020 is available to the Indian audience on the Star Sports Network. Along with Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 2 SD and HD, fans can also catch the live action on the Dream Sports' FanCode app.

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(IMAGE SOURCE | Sunil Narine's Instagram)