IPL 2025 Auction: 3 Times KKR Missed To Get A Captain On Day 1 And Day 2

Sakshi Sharma

Nitish Rana and KL Rahul (Source: @sujeetsuman1991, x.com and AkashKkrian,x.com)Nitish Rana and KL Rahul (Source: @sujeetsuman1991, x.com and AkashKkrian,x.com)

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) strategy at the auction has always been a bold one and the same was seen in IPL 2025. KKR has always been a franchise and that seem to follow a pattern of going big on one player, and this time, that player was Venkatesh Iyer. While his move might seem like an overspend at first glance, KKR’s approach to auctions has typically involved one big gamble already knowing that the rest of the squad might need to be made up of lesser-known or undervalued players. 

In the big picture, KKR's auction strategy, while appearing risky in the short term, could work out if their retained players continue to perform at their peak. However, after all this, it is important to note that KKR has yet to manage to get a ready-made captain for this season.

In this article, let's look at three players that KKR have missed, if purchased, could be their captain for IPL 2025. 

Steve Smith

  • KKR has not purchased Steve Smith, and he remains unsold at the IPL 2025 auction. One of the prime reasons that KKR has not attained Steve Smith's could be that the franchise has already attracted a lot of foreign players, so they opted out to buy experience player. 
  • However, if KKR had brought him, they would not have just purchased him as an experienced batter along with him; they would have also got a captain in his form. He also has experience in captaincy in international cricket, and retaining and appointing him as the captain would have been a good move by KKR. 

Nitish Rana 

  • Nitish Rana has joined the RR after being bought for Rs 4.20 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction. He had been a consistent performer for KKR, and contributed significantly to the team's success. He has earlier been the captain for the franchise in 2023 and has played a decent role. The franchise did not retain or use the Right to Match (RTM) for Rana. 
  • Rana was an integral part of the KKR setup since 2018. In fact, he was even elevated to the captaincy role in 2023 after regular skipper Shreyas Iyer missed out on that season owing to his recovery from a back injury. He was a consistent run-getter for KKR, scoring more than 200 runs in each of the seasons, barring 2024, where he played only two games amid injury concerns and this could be the reason that KKR have not opted for him.

KL Rahul

  • KL Rahul has officially joined the Delhi Capitals for 14 crore for IPL 2025. Kolkata Knight Riders did not actively go for Rahul, ultimately allowing him to slip through their fingers. Had KKR decided to invest more effort in acquiring him, Rahul wouldn’t just have enhanced their batting lineup. He would have also presented a compelling option for the captaincy role, bringing his leadership skills and experience to IPL 2025.