IPL 2025: Will Venkatesh Iyer lead Kolkata Knight Riders?
What's the story
The 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction saw Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) shell out a whopping ₹23.75 crore for batter Venkatesh Iyer, leading to speculation of a captaincy role for the player. This comes despite KKR's decision against retaining their 2024 title-winning captain Shreyas Iyer, who was picked up by Punjab Kings for ₹26.75 crore. The Knight Riders earlier retained Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, and Ramandeep Singh.
Team composition
KKR's new acquisitions and captaincy conundrum
Apart from holding on to a strong core, KKR has also roped in new players like Quinton de Kock, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Anrich Nortje, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, and Umran Malik. Even with this well-rounded squad, the franchise has a dilemma over its leadership. The huge investment in Iyer indicates that he could be in the running for the captaincy role.
Track record
Iyer's performance and potential as KKR captain
Having played 50 IPL games, Venkatesh has scored 1,326 runs at 31.57. The tally includes 11 fifties and a ton. In 2023, he became the second centurion for KKR after Brendon McCullum, who smashed a record-breaking century in IPL's first-ever encounter. Iyer scored 104 off 51 balls against five-time champions Mumbai Indians. Sunil Narine is KKR's only other centurion to date.
Record
Four successive 50+ scores in IPL playoffs
Iyer is the only batter with four successive 50-plus scores in IPL playoffs. The left-handed batter smashed a 26-ball 52* in the 2024 final against Sunrisers Hyderabad. He also smashed an unbeaten 51 in KKR's win against SRH in Qualifier 1. The southpaw scored 50 against eventual champions Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2021 final. Earlier that year, he slammed 55 against Delhi Capitals in Qualifier 2.
Leadership aspirations
Iyer expresses readiness for captaincy role
Iyer has also publicly stated that he would be willing to take on the captaincy role if given the opportunity. He has been an active part of KKR's leadership group and has even filled in as captain in Nitish Rana's absence due to injury. His experience, along with high performance levels and a hefty price tag, make him a strong candidate to lead KKR in the next IPL season.