KKR Squad Comparison: IPL 2025 vs IPL 2026
In the IPL 2025 mega auction, KKR did not have a big budget as they retained the maximum of six players from last season. They really went for it Venkatesh Iyer at the auction and eventually bagged it for INR 23.75 crore. However, this move failed to yield a win in IPL 2025 as Iyer managed only 142 runs from 11 innings at an average of 20.29. He did not bowl a single delivery during the tournament.
After spending so much money to re-sign one of their former players, KKR did not have the pocketbook needed to bring back the likes of Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc, who played a key role in their IPL 2024 triumph. The Kolkata franchise also did not go for the available captaincy options and had to appoint Ajinkya Rahane as skipper, a player who went unsold twice before being brought in at his base price in the auction.
Quinton de Kock was brought in because KKR hoped he would play the role of Salt. However, the Proteas wicketkeeper had one of his worst seasons with the bat in a long time. The other overseas wicketkeeper, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, also failed to impress.
Neither Anrich Nortje nor Spencer Johnson managed to play the role of Starc, and KKR lacked an overseas seamer who could lead the attack and mentor youngsters like Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora along the way.
When I saw the KKR team on paper, many problems were apparent. A reliable overseas pacer and an explosive wicketkeeper-batsman were missing. No team showed interest in acquiring Rahane’s services in the auction, and KKR had to appoint the same player as captain due to the lack of options.
Ahead of the IPL 2026 mini-auction, KKR understood that they had to make major changes on their end. They had to make some tough decisions, including letting go of old servants like Venkatesh Iyer and Andre Russell. In stark contrast to last year, KKR participated in this year’s auction with the highest budget of INR 64.3 crore.
They didn’t hold back while bidding for Cameron Green and Matheesha Pathirana, two of the biggest names at the auction, signing both for INR 25.20 crore and INR 18 crore respectively. Rovman Powell and Mustafizur Rahman are excellent backups for the aforementioned players.
While KKR could not find a player who could serve as captain, it must be said that there were not too many such options available at the mini-auction.
KKR signed destructive wicketkeeper-batsman Finn Allen, who could be as dangerous as Salt on his day. They were also reunited with Tim Seifert, who would be a similar replacement for Allen if he were to miss a game or two. Tejasvi Dahiya is another wicketkeeper who could play an important role for the Knights next season.
KKR has a more aggressive look towards their squad after the mini-auction. They can remain in the list of teams that are favorites to participate in the IPL 2026 play-offs.
KKR IPL 2026 squad:
Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik, Cameron Green, Finn Allen, Matheesha Pathirana, Tejasvi Singh, Kartik Tyagi, Prashant Solanki, Daksh Kamra, Sarthak Ranjan, Mustafizur Rahman, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Akash Deep, Rachin Ravindra.
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