Two sides of Kolkata Knight Riders’ Brett Lee

The appointment is intriguing,because the fast bowler has one of the most thankless of tasks in T20s especially on unresponsive Indian tracks. Now,Lee will also take on added responsibility. In a format where coaches and players have to be in a position to respond at any given instant,it will be a challenge,but Lee is game for it.

“I’m excited about the challenge. My advantage is that I have been with the side from the very first season and I know the boys well. I don’t think the additional role is much of a burden. As a senior player you always share your experience and provide inputs. Every member of the group knows his job well. But IPL is a long tournament. We would be playing 16 matches (in the group phase). So a time will come when you need to go back to the drawing board and work as a unit. It’s a challenge I’m looking forward to,” said Lee after the team’s training session at the Eden Gardens on Friday.

As KKR get ready for their first match against Delhi Daredevils on April 3,the 37-year-old has a word of caution for his team mates. “I appreciate what we achieved last season. But we must forget that now and start afresh. I’ve huge confidence in the group and the players are experienced enough to know this,” he said.

Lee is waiting for Gambhir to join the side and believes that his omission from the Indian Test team will not make any impact as far as KKR’s progress is concerned. “Test and T20 are two different formats. Gautam’s arrival will lift the side.” Lee also said he hoped Jacques Kallis would hit top form straightaway,because the South African “will have to play a big role” in the team’s title defence.

“Kallis is a great player. He can change the course of a match with his batting,and also with his bowling. His role is going to be very important.”

The speedster spoke about the recently concluded Test series and congratulated India for using the home conditions perfectly. About Australia he said: “They have a lot of work to do before the Ashes.” He signed off,wishing speedy recovery for New Zealand batsman Jesse Ryder.

Dhawan to miss first game

Sunrisers Hyderabad,the new IPL outfit,have suffered a blow ahead of the tournament with star player Shikhar Dhawan being ruled out due to injury for at least their opening tie against Pune Warriors,to be held on April 5.

“Shikhar Dhawan at this stage will not be available for the first game. We are obviously working closely with the BCCI and the medical team with regard to his progress,” Sunrisers coach Tom Moody said. “We are hoping that within a couple of weeks he will be available to join the team,” he added. Dhawan,who scored fastest ever century on debut in the recently-concluded Test series against Australia,had sustained an injury during the series.

Asked how many matches Dhawan is likely to miss,Moody replied: “We don’t know as yet. We are hoping that he is going to have a speedy recovery.”

Stating that the team has a good mix of youth and experience,the coach said that the efforts are being made to improve the bonding among them.

“It (preparation for the IPL) has been going on well. Our first official training session will be this afternoon. We have had a number of meetings with players. Myself,Waqar (Younis),who is the bowling coach and our assist coach…we spent a lot of time on a individual basis,” he said.

“For us obviously it is new. Lot of new faces we need to get familiar with. So we spent a good time getting to know the players. We had a good team evening,a good bounding session,which we will continue to do over the next week also. Lot of international players are scheduled to come in the next few days. We are obviously excited,” Moody added.

Regarding the Sri Lankan players in the team Kumar Sangakkara and Thisara Perera — who would not be able to play in Chennai,Moody said the issue will be dealt by the officials. “We will let the officials deal with the delicate situation. Both the players (Sangakkara and Perera) are coming and I am sure the officials will sort out the situation in Chennai,” he said.

Meanwhile,Waqar Younis,who is the bowling coach of Sunrisers,said it is going to be a big challenge for him. “It is very exciting for me and also a big challenge. I am appearing in IPL for the first time,hopefully,with Tom and me,Dale Steyn,Ishant Sharma and a lot of other players ,we make a good unit and try to do well,” he said.

Waqar insisted that he would not be doing anything with seasoned players like Dale Steyn and Ishant Sharma but take care of the younger ones. He also said it is a great advantage to have VVS Laxman as the team mentor.