Kolkata Knight Riders have had a spectacular second half in the 14th season of the IPL. Their campaign was tottering in India’s leg in April. However, cometh the hour cometh the performances. The team catalyzed into a fighting force and put up inspired performances to now be in Qualifier 2. They are already two-time champions and can very well reach the finals and go on to win the trophy.
The franchise has always been a huge brand and comes with the reputation of being “larger than life”. This persona has been lent by the presence of the superstar Shah Rukh Khan as their owner. The team, over the years, has boasted of some of the iconic names in the game of cricket. Players like Ponting, Ganguly, Gayle, Shoaib Akhtar, and Kallis have all played for the franchise at some point or the other. Of these players, some have gone on to become coaches while others are into the analysis.
There are cricketers who have gone into cricket administration, politics, and a gamut of another such profession. Some of the players have chosen commentary as their career. We look at 5 KKR players who currently commentate for cricket.
1. Dinesh Karthik
Karthik is a current KKR player and captained the side in 2018 and 2019. He has been the team’s wicketkeeper, middle-order batsman as well as captain. He continues to be a batsman and wicketkeeper but the captaincy duties have been handed over to Morgan. After the 2019 World Cup, chances dried for Karthik at the international level and he has since turned to commentate. He donned the role of commentator for the ICC World Test Championship 2021 and then was on the Sky Sports team commentary team for the India-England test series. His reviews were very encouraging and people loved him.
2. Harbhajan Singh
Bhajji was one of India’s best spinners under Ganguly and Dhoni’s captaincy. He played for Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings before moving to KKR in 2021. He last played for India in 2016 and would is unlikely to make a comeback in the India colors. He has been a regular on the Hindi commentary team over the past few years and has been chatty about his experiences when playing for India. However, his commentary has been criticized on social media for being uninspiring and unexciting.
3. Ricky Ponting
In 2008, KKR had picked Ganguly and Ponting as part of their team and it seemed like a coup had been pulled off. It would be a matter of dreams to see the two legends play in the same team. however, he failed to perform in KKR and was released the next season. Other than picking stints as coach or mentor for various teams, Ponting has featured consistently in the commentary box. He has been seen commentating on the Ashes, Big Bash League, and Border-Gavaskar series among others.
4. Brett Lee
The speed demon when he was in his prime, Lee played for KKR between 2011-13. He lifted the trophy in 2012 and was instrumental in making the team a force to reckon with. Lee over the years has dabbled into films, music among other things. He is also a regular commentator on the IPL and Big Bash League and is often a fan favorite. His charming personality makes him popular with his fans.
5. Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra is a constant feature in the commentary box today. He is part of every series and also does his own analysis of the game. Not many know that he played for KKR in 2008-09. He has played a total of 21 games in IPL. Today, in Hindi commentary, there is no rival to Chopra who often entertains the audience with quirky one-liners and witty lines. He has also found himself in sticky wickets due to some of his statements.
