Not Venkatesh Iyer Or Rinku Singh! KKR Announce Ex-India Skipper As Captain For IPL 2025
Photo : KKR
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be heading into the IPL 2025 as the defending champions, having won their third title in 2024. They had released Shreyas Iyer before the IPL 2025 auction, which meant that franchise would head into the season with a new captain. After much speculation, KKR has finally announced former India Test captain Ajinkya Rahane as their skipper for the upcoming season of the IPL.
Ajinkya Rahane was bought at his base price of Rs 1.5 crore by KKR in the IPL 2025 auction. He was at first unsold, and came back in the accelerated stages at the auction, where the franchise scooped him up.
CHECK OUT: Full IPL 2025 Schedule
"It’s an honour to be asked to lead KKR, which has been one of the most successful franchises in the IPL. I think we have an excellent and balanced squad. I look forward to working with everyone and taking up the challenge of defending our title,” Rahane said after being named the KKR skipper.
Rahane has captained Rajasthan Royals previously in the IPL for 24 games in 2018 and 2019. He led the franchise to a playoff finish in 2018. He also captained Rising Pune Supergiant in a single game in IPL 2017 in the absence of MS Dhoni. Rahane's most famous captaincy achievement is guiding India to a historic 2-1 Border-Gavaskar Trophy series win in Australia in 2020/21.
Venkatesh Iyer Named Vice-Captain
There were heavy rumours after the IPL 2025 auction that Venkatesh Iyer would be named as the captain of the franchise after KKR picked him up for Rs 23.75 crore, making him the third-most expensive purchase in IPL history. The Madhya Pradesh all-rounder has now been named as the vice-captain.
“We are delighted to have someone like Ajinkya Rahane, who brings his experience and maturity as a leader. Also, Venkatesh Iyer has been a franchise player for KKR and brings a lot of leadership qualities. We are confident that they will combine well as we start the defense of our title," KKR CEO Venky Mysore declared.
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