Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will have to appoint a new leader for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025), after sacking their previous captain Shreyas Iyer. While names like Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane have been floating as the franchise’s next captaincy pick, another name will be added.

Talented middle-order batsman and finisher Rinku Singh could claim the KKR captaincy after being named the new leader of their Uttar Pradesh (UP) state team for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT).

The 27-year-old takes over the captaincy from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who led UP in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), where they lost to Delhi in the quarter-finals.

Notably, this is also the first time that Rinku will captain a state team at the senior level. Earlier this year, he played a pivotal role in leading the Meerut Mavericks to victory in the UPT20 League, amassing 210 runs in nine innings at an impressive strike rate of 161.54, excelling primarily as a finisher.

Rinku Singh talks about KKR captaincy

Rinku’s recent promotion within the UP team coincides with KKR’s ongoing deliberations over his captaincy options for IPL 2025. A part of the KKR franchise since 2018, he was retained ahead of the mega auction in November alongside Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy and Ramandeep Singh.

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Talking about his ambitions for KKR captaincy, Rinku said before VHT’s first match:

“I don’t think too much about KKR captaincy in the new IPL season. “I am focused on my plans for Uttar Pradesh as I want my team to regain the trophy we won for the first time in 2015-16.”

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