Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders have already finalized their IPL 2025 Retention List. Then, the next step is a successful auction. Heading into the IPL 2025 Auction, KKR will see a new strategy. The 3-time champions this time will target Indian superstars rather than breaking their entire bank on overseas players.
The new mantra for the Knight Riders has now changed. In the last auction, the team spent a whopping 24.75 crore on Mitchell Starc. But a year later in the IPL 2025 Mega Auction, the defending champions have now turned their attention to the Indian stars. The Plan for the Kolkata outfits is to target National team players who are specialized.
New captain for KKR?
No, there won’t be Shreyas Iyer for the Knight Riders. The KKR franchise decided not to retain their star captain. Reports emerged that Iyer was asking for an exorbitant price which the Knights declined. And thus now the question arises, who will captain KKR this season?
KKR will be on the lookout and hunt for Indian star players who will be available in the auction. And the same will also be applicable to the side in terms of the Right To Match. Inside sources from the team have informed InsideSport that the club will be focussed on buying specialized players and RTM on Indian players.
With Iyer gone, Sunil Narine (18 crore), Rinku Singh (14 crore), Venkatesh Iyer (11 crore) and Harshit Rana (4 crore, uncapped) are the players that have been retained by the side.