Will Litton get another chance to play for Kolkata this season in the IPL?

Litton Das got off to the near-perfect start in his Indian Premier League (IPL) career for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) when he cracked the first ball he faced through the covers for a boundary.

But from there, it all went downhill for him as he would get out three balls later without adding another run to his name.

But what really drew the ire of the KKR fans was his wicketkeeping fumbles in a tight match against Delhi Capitals, a team without a win before that match. 

Litton missed two chances to get the batter out from behind the stumps and had those chances been taken, KKR could have won the match. 

Unsurprisingly, he was left out of the team altogether in the next match for KKR, which they also lost against Chennai Super Kings. 

But a few things happened this season that leaves us with a few answers as to what Litton's future in the IPL for KKR might hold and how many more opportunities he might get.

A faltering opening combo

Kolkata have been trying various opening combos to no avail in the tournament so far and that could pave the way for Litton to come back into the side.

KKR have so far tried five different opening combinations in seven matches and their highest opening partnership has been of 26 runs, which highlights how big a problem area it is for the franchise.

In the last match, the opening partnership of Sunil Narine and Narayan Jagadeesan fetched them just one run. 

Overseas players failing

Even though Litton hasn't impressed in the only opportunity he got for KKR, the other overseas players have not had a much better time either. 

Especially the experienced West Indian duo of Sunil Narine and Andre Russell who are widely regarded as legends of KKR.

Both look like they're past their best years and haven't been as effective as they once used to be for Shah Rukh Khan's team.

Jason Roy looked good and scored quick runs in the last match but seemed to have injured himself and it remains to be seen if he's fit enough for the next match.

But Litton's biggest competition has to be Afghanistan's wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz.

He did get more opportunities and there was one game where he scored 57 off 44 balls.

That was in the second match for KKR against Royal Challengers Bangalore.

But after that, Gurbaz scored 15, 0, and 8, respectively, before being dropped. 

The Ireland series looms large

From Mohammad Ashraful to Mashrafe Mortaza, Bangladesh's players don't have a great record in the IPL and Litton's first match might just be an omen of that trend continuing, but that's a story for another day. 

Add to that, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan has recently said that he doesn't expect the Bangladesh players to be playing in most of the IPL matches for their respective teams.

The BCB chief also added that he feels the players also know about this. 

Another thing will be Bangladesh's upcoming tour of England where they face Ireland in three ODI's starting from 9 May.

KKR will have four matches from 26 April to 8 May but Litton is expected to join the Bangladesh squad earlier as they play a practice match on 5 May.

The ODI series ends on 14 May and KKR will have one more group stage match after the 14th on 20 May.

So overall, Litton may be available for three more matches for Kolkata in the remaining season, perhaps even more if he joins the team after the practice match on the 5th.

But Litton is more than likely to get at least another chance this season in the IPL for KKR and prove his worth given the current circumstances.

All is not yet lost as some fans are predicting more doom and gloom for Litton's IPL future and he can still come away from this with more experience and a better player overall.