Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have announced batsman Ajinkya Rahane as the captain of the team ahead of the IPL 2025 season, while all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer will be the vice-captain of the team. Under the leadership of Rahane, the KKR team will go to defend the title. Last season, Shreyas Iyer took over the command of the team and led the team to the title after a wait of 10 years. Shreyas will captain Punjab Kings this time, so KKR will go under the leadership of the new captain.

KKR faces RCB in the first match

Venkatesh Iyer was bought by KKR for the highest price and he will work closely with Rahane in the upcoming season. Venkatesh has been a part of the Kolkata franchise for a long time. Defending champions KKR will begin their campaign in IPL 2025 with a match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on March 22 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Rahane is ready to defend the title

After being appointed captain, Rahane said, it is an honor to captain KKR which is one of the most successful franchises in the IPL. I think our team is balanced and fantastic. I am looking forward to working together with everyone for the challenge of defending the title.

Rahane has captaincy experience.

Rahane is returning to KKR after spending two years in Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He has proven himself as a T20 player. Rahane played seven matches for KKR in the 2022 season and scored 133 runs. This experienced Mumbai batsman also has experience of captaining in the IPL. Rahane captained Rajasthan Royals in the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Rahane is the captain of the Mumbai Ranji team and was also the regular vice-captain of the Indian team during Virat Kohli's captaincy.

Rahane has played for KKR before and the franchise bought him at his base price of Rs 1.5 crore in the mega auction. Under Rahane's leadership, the Indian team registered a historic win in the Test series in Australia in 2020-21. Under his leadership, Mumbai reached the semi-finals in the recently concluded Ranji Trophy. There are not many options for captaincy in the KKR team. From the Indian players, they had to choose one among Rahane, Venkatesh, and Rinku Singh.

PC Social media