Due to a lower back ailment, Shreyas Iyer has been forced to withdraw from the competition, while Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has announced that he would not be playing this year.
Roy last played for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2021 season. Roy has previously appeared in the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He participated in five games in 2021 and scored 150 runs, including a half-century. The 32-year-old has participated in 64 T20 Internationals for England, recording 8 fifties and 1522 runs at a S/R of 137.61.
In the last year of IPL, Jason Roy himself decided to opt out due to harsh bubble wrap that would have kept him away from him family. Kolkata Knight Riders suffered a big blow when Shakib Al Hassan made himself unavailable for the tournament because he wanted to focus on national duty and family.
Will Jason Roy Be Game Changer For Kolkata Knight Riders?
It can be hardly said what his impact will be. KKR is extremely brisk with its batting line-up, a wicket or two will put this team under immense pressure so Jason Roy will certainly reduce the probability of damage. Also, he is a type of player who can pay long destructive innings but it’s not that he’s going to always succeed.
To think to one player will change the fortunes of a team is wrong way to look at things in cricket. Yes, definitely he will strengthen the team, he has enormous experience of playing in T20 leagues. He played in the PSL, scored a magnificent century for his team but those were on flat tracks and against inexperienced youngsters.
IPL serves a different task, it’s not easy to go big everyday but if he understands his role, whether it is to bat long or to provide a solid start, he can get the job done. And changing a team inbetween is a sign of weakness, it means that Kolkata Knight Riders is lacking something in their batting line-up, and hoping that things will look settled if Roy gets to do the business.