IPL 2025: 3 players who can captain Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

Kolkata Knight Riders released Shreyas Iyer before the IPL 2025 mega auction.

Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 winners Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) made significant moves in the two-day IPL 2025 mega auction. KKR’s strategy revolved around trying to buy back most of the players who were part of their title-winning campaign.

KKR batters played an aggressive brand of cricket last season. The franchise now added Quinton de Kock and Rahmanullah Gurbaz to their squad. KKR also brought back young sensation Angkrish Raghuvanshi for INR 3 crores.

The biggest acquisition for the franchise in the mega auction was all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer, who will rejoin KKR for a hefty price of INR 23.75 crores. Venkatesh was the third most expensive player at the IPL 2025 mega auction.

Despite making a few excellent signings, the franchise now have a difficult task of naming a captain for the next season. Shreyas Iyer’s departure has left a big hole in the leadership group of KKR. In this article, we will take a look at the three names that can fill that space for KKR.

Three players who can captain Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2025:

1. Venkatesh Iyer

KKR’s most expensive acquisition of the IPL 2025 mega auction, Venkatesh Iyer, is the favourite to lead the franchise next season. Venkatesh has previously led KKR in 2023 in Nitish Rana’s absence.

Speaking after the auction about the potentially getting the captaincy role, Venkatesh said, “I’ve always believed that captaincy is just a tag, but leadership is about creating an environment where everyone feels they can play for this team and contribute. If given the responsibility, I would be more than happy to take it on.“

2. Rinku Singh

Indian middle-order batsman Rinku Singh has emerged as one of the faces of KKR in the last two seasons. He had a breakthrough IPL season in 2023 when he amassed 474 runs.

Despite a lack of experience in the leadership role, Rinku’s loyalty to the franchise can earn him a captaincy role next season.

3. Quinton de Kock

Veteran South African wicket-keeper batter Quinton de Kock is a strong captaincy candidate in KKR’s squad. De Kock is one of the most senior players in the KKR squad and his experience of playing across different leagues around the world can prove valuable for the franchise.

De Kock has previously captained South Africa in 11 T20Is, eight ODIs and four test matches. He also boasts an impressive batting record in IPL with 3157 runs in 107 innings at a healthy batting average of 32. He won two titles with Mumbai Indians, playing a key role in both.

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