KKR, I feel is the weakest team in the IPL, I have been a great follower of this team since the start of the IPL but have disappointed to a large extent.  SRK must be wondering what is going wrong with his team.

Reason 1. - I don’t know but on paper  the team has good players and the likes of Macculum, Gayle, Ganguly, Ishant Sharma are capable of winning matches single handedly but none of them has done it so far. The team may have different reasons but they remind me of Indain team before captain Ganguly. The reasons may varry but still the thing is they have approach of losers. 

Reason 2. - Another reason in case of KKR is the team has got a lot more visibility than any other team and the reason is obvious “SRK” and to some extent Ganguly and to some extent “Buchanan’s theorem of multiple captains”. Except Ganguly I don’t think there is anyone who is ready to face this much of publicity, most of the players from KKR must have come to know that the fan following of KKR is more than their country’s population and that is a huge burden of expectations. This must be affecting their performance. It could have been the same case had been a positive visibility.

Reason 3. Another reason I think is both SRK and Buchanan are trying to handle ( not Solving ) the problems using their charisma and philosophy about the game respectively. On the management side both of them are dominating personalities and on players’ side Ganguly, Gayle and Macculum are also dominating types. This becomes a deadly combination and takes care of small problem turning out to be a  bigger problem. I don’t see any analysis has been done before the match and after the match and if it’s done I don’t see anyone ever implemented it. Some one please update me if he /she has seen any kind of home work done by KKR and plan well executed by them.

Reason 4. - Macculum may be a good captain but I still think he can not lead 7  Indian players as language is different, he himself has hardly seen the other Indian players except Ganguly which makes his job difficult. Every one can not be Shane Warne to make Kamran khan look like a greates bowler of all time.

And a suggestion to SRK and Buchanan - This is not an inexperienced “Chak de India” team, but most of them are seasoned players and can not be motivated with his style, attitude etc. He needs to come out with something extra ordinary to boost the spirit of the team  and Buchanan should start looking for a next captain, may be a non playing one, may be one of his sons.

I don’t see KKR’s fortune changing in near future ……… God Bless them !!!

People who saw yesterday’s Ganguly innings must have seen the old determination, focus on his face. It wasn’t even a half century but a true Ganguly admirer or a hardcore Ganguly critic ( this number is huge ) must have felt that he is back to normal and not only to normal but he was even running pretty well in between the wickets and the sixes he hit to Munaf were awsome hits. One should remember that one of them was a pull of a short delivery and was a just shut up shot.

Media has always been “kind” with him when it comes to promote the controversies and critisism that he has been facing from the day he entered the international circuit… be it the drinks issue or opting out from a match, losing captaincy, losing his place from Indian team or the super duper hit Greg Chappel incident. After facing all this now SRK and John Buchanan have joined the band wagon.

 So having so many people including his boss to critisize him, he had a task cut out and that’s where I feel he is at his best. The innings I felt was very mature and very few people could have handled that pressure; generated more by Shane Warne’s delaying tactics of shuffling fielding after every ball and acting to be in a serious discussion with the bowler after each delivery than the target. Ganguly was the best possible person out there to handle all this.

SRK must have learnt a lot of things from Ganguly’s innings like one needs a mentally strong person to play in these coditions, there are lots of skills required other than just hitting sixers, taking wickets and having multiple captains. Having done all that Ganguly has given it back to SRK and Buchanan. So I would like to ask Mr. SRK and Mr. Buchanan , “who is going to be the next captain after losing 2 matches out of 3?”

It could have been a cherry on cake if KKR had won the match but atleast I am happy for Ganguly for his innings, the way he handled Shane Warne, the way he dismissed Munaf, the way he hit back to SRK and Buchanan and proved his capabilities yet again. People ( Ganguly’s critics) may find it partial but that’s the way I ( and Ganguly’s fans ) feel. I can see better Ganguly innings coming in next few matches as he must be feeling task half done. He proved his point but was unable to win the match for KKR which is his half job remaining.

IPL is still about cricket played on the field

Looks like KKR is finding it difficult to understand that IPL is necessarily a cricket contest played, won/lost on the field. It is still a battle between bat and ball.
SRK would do well if he uses himself as a brand which pulls crowd, gets traffic on KKR website, motivates players, fights for players and supports all senior - junior players. SRK may detach himself from passing on cricketing judgments and trying to do too many changes in the team structure, endorsing innovations in cricket, slamming and apologizing ex-cricketers etc. Showing long faces after the match won’t help brand SRK. It is in SRK’s interest to keep looking cheerful and supporting players. By him being involved in cricketing aspects and making big statements is not going to help KKR. KKR will win if players perform. Even if KKR loses, being a positive energy SRK as a brand will still remain as winner…. Bazigar! Harkar bhi jeetne wale ko…!!!
Looks like insulting Ganguly has become a fashion. Now SRK also wants to adopt and promote that fashion.
My sincere feeling is all cricketing aspects should be left for Dada. He has successfully lead and encouraged raw teams with a lot of spirit. Buchanan should help out young players for honing skills.

In corporate analogy, I feel roles (roles, not titles) should be as follows –
SRK: Head - Marketing
Buchanan: Head - R&D
Ganguly: Head - Projects Delivery