Kolkata Knight Riders finished just outside the playoffs spot (No. 5) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 season despite putting in some incredibly memorable performances. The inconsistency of the team cost them a spot in the top four and all-rounder Andre Russell didn’t shy away from highlighting the ‘unhealthy atmosphere in the team’. With the new season nearing its start, KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik has opened up about the dispute with Russell.
Speaking on YouTube at the RK Show, Karthik addressed to the comments made by Russell which sparked a huge controversy, making many fans even question if Karthik is the right man to lead the franchise. The wicket-keeper batsman claims to have spoken to Russell over the issue and resolved the conflicts then and there itself.
“To be fair, he’s one of those guys who wears his heart on his sleeve. i am sure he meant whatever he said. But again, West Indies players are in your face kind of people. But whatever they say, they say it honestly and it’s up to how you take it. If you want to take it offensively, then the mistake is on your part. If you want to take it constructively which is how I looked it. We had a conversation over it man to man.
“He wasn’t happy with me, he wasn’t happy that the team wasn’t winning, that is the bottom line. Whatever he said, I completely respected it.
Though many questions were raised about the state of affairs in the team, the controversy didn’t last long. As per Karthik, the situation normalised because of the rapport he and Russell have with each other.
“He was a little apologetic as well. At the end of the day, I have a great relationship with him. If I didn’t have a great relationship with him, it could have spiralled into something nasty,” Karthik further explained.
“Because I have an honest relationship with him where I can go straight up to him and be like ‘Russ you know what, I don’t think what you have said is right, because the way it has come out, it’s not great’. He also said ‘you know skip, this is how I felt about it not how it’s come out’. There itself half the battle is over.
“But then he had an issue. He said ‘we can do this better. I don’t think you are doing this way’. And then I had to explain ‘being a leader, I can’t completely please you but we can change things around but not exactly like you want’.
“Having different opinions and dealing with it is one of the most important things. I think you need to be able to stand up and have a conversation. Sometimes a hard conversation as well,” Karthik added.
