As the IPL 2025 Mega Auction draws near, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are strategising to strengthen their squad for another title challenge. After winning their third IPL title in 2024, KKR is keen to build a balanced team, focusing on leadership and essential player additions.
The franchise has retained six players from their 2024 squad, including star names like Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine, Harshit Rana, and Ramandeep Singh. This leaves KKR with a purse of Rs 51 crore for the upcoming auction.
KKR will have 19 available slots, including six for overseas players. One of their key priorities in the auction will be appointing a new captain following the departure of Shreyas Iyer. Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, the former Delhi Capitals captain, has emerged as a leading candidate, along with KL Rahul, former Lucknow Super Giants skipper, known for his consistency and leadership qualities. The Knight Riders will enter the auction without any Right-to-Match (RTM) cards.
Here is a look at KKR's retained and released players for IPL 2025:
Retained Players:
- Rinku Singh (Batter) – Rs 13 crore
- Andre Russell (All-rounder) – Rs 12 crore
- Varun Chakravarthy (Bowler) – Rs 12 crore
- Sunil Narine (All-rounder) – Rs 12 crore
- Harshit Rana (Bowler) – Rs 4 crore
- Ramandeep Singh (Bowler) – Rs 4 crore
Released Players:
- Shreyas Iyer (Batter)
- Nitish Rana (All-rounder)
- Venkatesh Iyer (All-rounder)
- Phil Salt (Batter)
- Jason Roy (Batter)
- Vaibhav Arora (Bowler)
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Keeper-batter)
- Suyash Sharma (Bowler)
- Anukul Roy (All-rounder)
- KS Bharat (Keeper-batter)
- Chetan Sakariya (Bowler)
- Mitchell Starc (Bowler)
- Angkrish Raghuvanshi (Batter)
- Sherfane Rutherford (Batter)
- Manish Pandey (Batter)
- Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman (Bowler)
- Gus Atkinson (Bowler)
- Sakib Hussain (Bowler)
Remaining purse: Rs 51 crore
RTM Cards available: 0
Slots available: 19 (6 overseas)
As KKR prepares to enter the auction, the focus remains on finding the right leadership and dynamic talent to complement their already strong squad. The IPL 2025 auction could prove pivotal in their quest for another title.
