Ajinkya Rahane has been KKR's captain since IPL 2025. PC- AP
The season of Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) has ended for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), where they ended in seventh position with 13 points under Ajinkya Rahane's captaincy.
As the three-time champions performed poorly, Rahane's leadership became the talking point of the season. Not just his captaincy, the veteran batter performed below par as a batter, scoring 335 runs in 14 matches at an average of 25.77.
Midway through the season, reports began circulating that the Kolkata skipper might lose his captaincy, but after KKR's elimination, it was said he had already played his last game for the franchise.
Meanwhile, Rahane took over the KKR captaincy ahead of IPL 2025, after the whole debacle with Shreyas Iyer after the championship victory in 2024.
Virender Sehwag asks Ajinkya Rahane to quit KKR captaincy
Putting salt on the wounds, former India and IPL legend, Virender Sehwag, has shared his thoughts on Ajinkya Rahane's captaincy at KKR. The former cricketer criticised for having conservative batters like Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and Manish Pandey in their eleven.
"Next year, they should find another captain, in my opinion, or look for a better team combination. Because now you have some players who don't have a high strike rate, like Ajinkya Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and Manish Pandey. So, it is difficult to play all three of them together," Virender Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
Furthermore, Sehwag suggested that the three-time champions either play Ajinkya Rahane just as a batter or drop him entirely.
So, either find a new captain and let Rahane feature as a player, and take the pressure away from him, or tell him, 'Thank you very much, this is the end'," Sehwag added.
Also Read: Ajinkya Rahane Drops Massive Hint On KKR Captaincy Future
Dark clouds on Abhishek Nayar after KKR's below-par IPL 2026
A poor run in the IPL 2026 has not only resulted in Ajinkya Rahane's sacking, but KKR's head coach Abhishek Nayar may lose his job, which he got before the season. Nayar's coaching was heavily criticised throughout the tournament.
Nayar, who coached the UP Warriorz in the WPL 2025, has quit his job with the franchise after a rather controversial season in which he forced Harleen Deol to retire early in a game. Under his leadership, they finished at the bottom of the points table.
Meanwhile, he was sacked as the Indian team assistant coach after the 1-3 Test series Down Under.
What is Arjun's key takeaway?
To be the devil's advocate, KKR had a season full of injuries with Harshit Rana, Akash Deep and Matheesha Pathirana's injuries throwing their campaign under the bus. The batters, especially their top order, had a slow start to the season, which led the Knight Riders to find their winning combination after the midway point.
But as soon as they got their winning combination, Ajinkya Rahane's leadership and valiant efforts from Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Sunil Narine and Kartik Tyagi turned the tide for KKR.
Having said that, Kolkata Knight Riders have got a solid core to work on ahead of the next season’s mini auction.
Also Read: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Blamed For Yashasvi Jaiswal's IPL 2026 Failure
