Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) go into Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction seeking a captain after releasing Shreyas Iyer last month. Having retained the core group, KKR enter the auction hall in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with a purse of ₹51 crore.
One of the three most successful franchises in IPL, KKR’s title-winning seasons have all been associated with Gautam Gambhir. The former India opener led the Shah Rukh Khan co-owned franchise to IPL titles in 2012 and 2014 before returning as a mentor in 2024 to guide the side to ultimate glory.
However, India head coach’s job calling, Gambhir was replaced by former West Indies cricketer Dwayne Bravo earlier this year. The three-time champions have retained six players including the West Indies duo of Andre Russell and Sunil Narine.
Varun Chakravarthy and Rinku Singh were among the capped Indian retainers while the Harshit Rana and Ramandeep Singh were uncapped when retained. Both Rana and Ramandeep made their India debuts earlier this month.
KKR won’t be able to use any right-to-match (RTM) cards since they have retained all six players. KKR CEO Venky Mysore was asked about who will become their captain.
“It’s an interesting question. We have six retentions who all have captaincy abilities. It could be also someone we buy in the auction,” said Mysore.
Marquee Set 1: Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Jos Buttler, Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada, Mitchell Starc
Marquee Set 2: KL Rahul, Yuzvendra Chahal, Liam Livingstone, David Miller, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj.
KKR’s full list of players bought in IPL 2025
The IPL 2025 mega auction is yet to start. It will start at 3 PM IST.
KKR’s IPL 2025 retained players list
Rinku Singh ( ₹13 crore), Varun Chakaravarthy ( ₹12 crore), Sunil Narine ( ₹12 crore), Andre Russell ( ₹11 crore), Harshit Rana ( ₹4 crore) and Ramandeep Singh ( ₹4 crore).
KKR’s IPL 2025 complete squad
Rinku Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Harshit Rana, Ramandeep Singh
Leave a Comment