Krunal Pandya (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: If pitch, conditions, dimensions and alignments are taken out of the equation, then Krunal Pandya is Picasso. With the bat-ball imbalance still tipping heavily in favor of the former in IPL 2026, the left-hander managed to restore some normalcy whenever he had the ball in hand. With his unique bag of tricks and street smarts, Krunal stayed one step ahead, one variation after another.At a time when teams are obsessing over each other and prioritizing skill over skill, Royal Challengers Bengaluru with Krunal do not face this problem. Left handed, no problem. Opener in form, no problem. Overcoming death? No problem. He is well equipped to handle any situation and the ease with which he operated in different phases of the game speaks volumes for his calm head. Even with Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja down due to match obsessions, Krunal has continued to work hard for RCB in IPL 2026, even against a ruthless Chinnaswamy.
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The IPL is changing the landscape of cricket and Krunal is changing the landscape of finger-spin bowling
RCB batsman and mentor Dinesh Karthik
For Krunal, it’s not just about being different, but being very smart about what he does. Bouncers aren’t thrown to look cool — that’s what she has her pigtails for — but to “create doubt in the batter.” Just like he did against his now teammate Venkatesh Iyer who played for Kolkata Knight Riders last season. The bouncer forced the left-hander to ask for a helmet and the next delivery caught him napping and hitting the woodwork.“He delivers bowling deliveries that people couldn’t really understand a few years ago and he uses them very cleverly. He’s not someone who does it just because it looks cool. He knows it creates doubt in the batter. He sets the trends. The IPL is changing the landscape of cricket and Krunal is changing the landscape of finger-spin bowling,” Karthik added.Krunal last appeared in the country in 2021 when he played a T20I vs Sri Lanka in Colombo. Since then, he has played for various IPL franchises and continued to grind it out on the domestic circuit for his home state of Baroda, but mostly he tried to stay one step ahead of the batsmen. In a chat with JioHotstar, the all-rounder expressed his strong desire to don the Indian jersey again and the 35-year-old need not look far for inspiration for a comeback. The RCB mentor and Krunal’s biggest cheerleader is no stranger to comebacks.
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