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The former Indian opener Virender Sehwag urged the struggling Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to make some bold decisions after their disappointing IPL 2026 campaign took another hit. After their disappointing loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Raipur, the Kolkata Knight Riders are now in a difficult situation in the IPL 2026 playoff race.
The Ajinkya Rahane-led Kolkata Knight Riders side is returning to its home ground, Eden Gardens in Kolkata, for the first time since April 16, but pressure on the team is huge this time. They are currently sitting 8th on the table with 9 points from 11 matches so far.
Their recent 6-wicket defeat against RCB hurt their playoff chances badly after KKR failed to defend 193 runs on the tough surface of Raipur. The top order failed to fire, while the bowling attack looked weak without Varun Chakravarthy, who is currently injured. And the story is the same for this season.
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Virender Sehwag wants KKR to drop Rovman Powell and Vaibhav Arora for the rest of the IPL 2026 season
As KKR gear up to face the red-hot Gujarat Titans in their crucial IPL 2026 clash on Saturday (May 16) in Kolkata, Virender Sehwag suggested the three-time champions drop Rovman Powell and Vaibhav Arora for this game.
The legendary opener has openly questioned Powell’s place in the playing XI. He felt that Powell had not contributed enough and KKR should now look at other options like Tim Seifert. Sehwag stressed that the New Zealand batter can play at number three if needed.
Virender Sehwag said on Cricbuzz, “I feel that he (Rovman Powell) is not making any contribution at all. So, you can try to play Tim Seifert instead of him or even Rahul Tripathi.”
Virender Sehwag suggests big changes in the KKR batting and bowling combination
He also slammed Vaibhav Arora’s performance against RCB as the pacer conceded 48 runs in four overs and failed to take a wicket. Sehwag believes that KKR must try either Umran Malik or Navdeep Saini in the remaining three games in the tournament.
Sehwag further noted, “In bowling, Vaibhav Arora is not making any significant contribution, so you can see a change there. I don’t know what kind of form Umran Malik is in; Saini has played one match where he didn’t do much.”
The cricket pundit also feels KKR can change the batting order. Sehwag added, “It is not necessary that Seifert should open; he can be played at No. 3 as well. They can consider sending Raghuvanshi at No. 4, or Ajinkya Rahane can come in at No. 3; that can also be done.”
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Rohan Gavaskar gives a brutal reality check on KKR’s IPL 2026 Playoff chances
Meanwhile, former KKR cricketer Rohan Gavaskar admitted that the franchise’s IPL 2026 playoff hopes are now almost out of their hands. He noted that even if Kolkata manage to win all their remaining matches, qualification will still depend heavily on other results going in their favor.
Gavaskar said during the same discussion, “What can you even say to the team at this point? Their first half did not go well. Although they are mathematically still in the playoffs race, for practical purposes, their qualification is not in their hands. It would have been better if their matches were against the teams placed above them. So, here, even if they keep winning, the teams above might also keep winning, so 15 points might not be enough.”
