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Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) won their third Indian Premier League (IPL) championship title in the 2024 season under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer and coaching of Gautam Gambhir. With the IPL 2025 mega auction approaching, the Kolkata-based franchise would be eager to assemble a team with the aim of defending their IPL title.
The IPL Governing Council (GC) rolled out new retention rules for the auction later this year. The new regulations will allow each IPL franchise to retain a maximum up to six players from their existing squads. They can either use the regular retention method or use the Right To Match (RTM) strategy. Additionally, the ‘Uncapped Player’ rule also makes its return, allowing Indian players who have retired, haven’t played for India or haven’t held a national contract for the past five years to play as uncapped players.
As KKR aim to defend their IPL championship title, here’s a likely list of retentions KKR might opt for the IPL 2025 season:
Possible Retention List For KKR Ahead Of IPL 2025 Mega Auction
1. Shreyas Iyer (Retention)
Shreyas Iyer emerges as a clear-cut retention choice as he led KKR to their third IPL championship title. With 3,127 runs in 115 matches, including 21 half-centuries, Iyer is also a proven batter. His leadership, paired with batting, has solidified his importance in the team.
2. Andre Russell (Retention)
Dynamic West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell has been instrumental to the KKR setup for last few years, be it with his exceptionally explosive batting or his variety-filled bowling. Russell has frequently turned games in KKR’s favour, earning a reputation as one of the most feared players in the IPL. Russel also emerges as an easy retention choice for KKR ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction.
4. Rinku Singh (Retention)
Rinku Singh is another name that has been associated with KKR’s success in recent times. Having built his reputation as one of the most explosive middle-order batsmen in the IPL, Rinku has consistently excelled in high-pressure situations. Rinku Singh is another name that is hard to let go of for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
4. Mitchell Starc (RTM)
Australian ace pacer Mitchell Starc was the marquee signing for KKR during the 2024 IPL auction as they picked him for a record-breaking ₹24.75 crores. Starc’s performance did not meet the lofty expectations associated with his price tag for the first half of the league but he delivered for the team in the latter stages. Starc put up a standout performance in the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he was named Player of the Match for his figures of 2 for 14 in three overs. He emerges as another player that KKR would be shy of letting go. However, KKR might opt for the RTM option to retain Starc.
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