Kolkata Knight Riders have announced their captain ahead of IPL 2025. Last season, under Shreyas Iyer’s leadership, the team became champions. However, Iyer was released before the mega auction and is now part of Punjab Kings.
The franchise was unable to buy him back in the auction. The three-time IPL champion KKR has now found a new captain. 36-year-old Rahane has been entrusted with the leadership role in Shah Rukh Khan’s team.
Meanwhile, all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer has also been given an important responsibility. Venkatesh will serve as KKR’s vice-captain in IPL 2025.
KKR acquired Rahane in the mega auction for his base price of ₹1.5 crore. He has played 185 IPL matches, scoring 4,642 runs at an average of 30.14. In the tournament, he has hit two centuries and 30 half-centuries. Rahane was also a part of KKR in IPL 2022.
Speaking of Ajinkya Rahane, he has performed exceptionally well in the domestic season this year. Under his leadership, Mumbai won the Irani Cup, and he also shined with the bat in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. In the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20, Rahane was the highest run-scorer with 469 runs in eight innings at an average of 58.62 and a strike rate of 164.56, including five half-centuries.
Rahane has also led the Indian team in several matches. Currently, he is out of the national squad and played his last international match in 2023.
KKR will begin their IPL 2025 campaign on March 22 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.
After being appointed as captain, Rahane said, “It is an honour to captain KKR, one of the most successful franchises in IPL. I believe our team is balanced and excellent. I am looking forward to working with everyone to defend the title.”
Rahane is returning to KKR after spending two years with Chennai Super Kings, where he proved himself as a T20 player. In the 2022 season, he played seven matches for KKR, scoring only 133 runs.
Rahane also has significant IPL captaincy experience. He led Rajasthan Royals in the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Additionally, he is the captain of the Mumbai Ranji team and was India’s regular vice-captain under Virat Kohli’s leadership. Under his captaincy, India also won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
Edited By- Sachin Kumar
