Brendon McCullum recalls 'wild coaching' with KKR in IPL 2021; 'We were dead and buried'

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 recently concluded in the UAE with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) defeating the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and clinching their fourth title of the tournament. Apart from CSK winning their fourth title, KKR qualifying for the IPL 2021 final was one of the massive turnaround fans witnessed in any T20 tournament. In IPL 2021 phase 1, KKR lost 5 out of 7 matches played. However, the Eoin Morgan-led squad registered a massive turnaround and won five games out of seven in the UAE leg of IPL 2021 to seal a spot in the playoffs. Now, KKR Head Coach Brendon McCullum in a conversation with SENZ Drive talked about the turnaround and his style of coaching.

"We rocked into the second half of the tournament, we were kind of dead and buried (after starting two wins and five losses). We were under a fair amount of pressure with two wins from seven games and seventh on the table out of eight. The expectations on us were pretty low," said Brandon McCullum. 

“My style of leadership or coaching was perhaps a little wild … it takes a little while to really dig down and thankfully we were able to do it in the second half of the tournament and we got a bit more intent into batting and then we were able to play a bit more of an aggressive form of cricket. Thankfully it translated to results and we got on a bit of a roll,” added McCullum. 

Brandon McCullum's rousing speech for KKR

Earlier, before the KKR vs CSK match, Brendon McCullum gave a rousing speech to his players. McCullum told his players to imagine the journey and think where they stood before coming into the second leg of the tournament last month. KKR was lurking behind at seventh position before making a strong comeback to secure a place in the playoffs. 

“Imagine things work out and then in five weeks, we're standing there with the trophy after two wins in seven games. Imagine that journey. Imagine the stories that you'll get to tell. Experiences that you got to share. That's what's in front of us. That should enthuse us, excite us. We've got nothing to lose lads. And that makes us dangerous," McCullum said. 

Brendon McCullum IPL

Brendon McCullum played in the IPL as a player from 2008 to 2018. McCullum in 109 matches in the IPL amassed 2881 runs with a strike rate of 131.61. McCullum's 158 not out for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the opening season is still engraved in every IPL fan. 

 (Image: BCCI)