Ajinkya Rahane appointed as captain of Kolkata Knight Riders for IPL 2025

In a surprising move, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have announced Ajinkya Rahane as their captain for the upcoming IPL 2025 season. Joining him as the vice-captain will be Venkatesh Iyer.

"It's an honour to be asked to lead KKR, which has been one of the most successful franchises in the IPL," Rahane said. 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."

Based on KKR's strategy at the IPL mega auction last November, Rahane may not have been part of their initial plans, going by how the bidding unfolded. He was unsold when his name came up the first time on day one of the auction, and was only bought by KKR at his base price of INR 1.5 crore when his name came up again as part of the accelerated round on the second day, just before the auction ended.

"We are delighted to have someone like Ajinkya Rahane, who brings his experience and maturity as a leader," KKR CEO Venky Mysore said. "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."

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It is his second stint at KKR, having played for them in 2022, when he scored only 133 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of 103.90. After that year, Rahane had a rejuvenation at Chennai Super Kings, for whom he scored 326 runs at a strike-rate of 172.48 in 2023. IPL 2024 wasn't as productive for Rahane and he was released by CSK after making 242 runs at a strike rate of 123.46 last year. He comes into this season on the back of an explosive performance for Mumbai in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy - top-scoring with 469 runs at a strike rate of 164.56.

Rahane's previous captaincy experience in the IPL spans 25 matches: one for Rising Pune Super Giant in 2017, and 24 for Rajasthan Royals in 2018-19. He was replaced by Steve Smith mid-way through the 2019 season.

Iyer, after not being one of KKR's six retained players ahead of November's mega auction, was bought back by the franchise for INR 23.75 crore. He was the fourth most expensive purchase in IPL auction history.

KKR's is Iyer's first franchise in the IPL and he has been with them since 2021. He was a key player in their title-winning campaign last year, scoring 370 runs at a strike rate of 158.79. In a recent interview with ESPNcricinfo, he had said he was "definitely ready" to lead KKR if offered the captaincy.

KKR are hosting the season opener against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Eden Gardens on March 22 by virtue of having won the IPL in 2024. They beat Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL final - their third title - under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer, who was not retained and is not captain of Punjab Kings.

With KKR announcing Rahane, the only team yet to name a captain is Delhi Capitals (DC). Rishabh Pant had led DC last year but was not retained and will lead his new team Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2025.