IPL 2019: Not focusing too much on Andre Russell, says Stephen Fleming

KKR's Andre Russell smashed an unbeaten 13-ball 48 against RCB in Bangalore last Friday. Pic/AFP

Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming yesterday said focussing too much on the big-hitting Andre Russell could backfire as Kolkata Knight Riders also have other quality batsmen in their line-up.

"Possibly, there are a couple of challenges. One is you ignore the other six [batsmen]. And in a team that has [Chris] Lynn, [Dinesh] Karthik and [Robin] Uthappa, you do that at your own peril. We've got to be careful, we don't focus overtly on Russell," he said ahead of today's match v KKR.

Stephen Fleming

"Even though he has been so dynamic, there's still good work done by the other players. So, again, I stress it doesn't change our preparation to focus on one or two players, but we're acutely aware of how dangerous these players are. So, it's business as usual for us," Fleming said.

With the flamboyant Jamaican being in red-hot form, Fleming said whether it is spin or seam, one had to be accurate against hitters like Russell. "You've got to put context around that as well - different stages of the game. Look at analysis and match up with what you have, it's no secret that we're spin-heavy anyway. So, if there's an opportunity to change-up to Russell, we will certainly look at it.

"Whether it's spin or seam at the end, you've to be accurate against hitters like Russell, [MS] Dhoni, [Kieron] Pollard and [Hardik] Pandya. It's no different really, the pressure is always on in the last few overs."

Also read: IPL 2019: Andre Russell mania in Virat Kohli's ring!

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