KKR Change Leadership Group Days Before IPL 2026

KKR make huge announcement [Source: @Cricsam01/x]

In a major development, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise has made a shocking change in the leadership group of the franchise days ahead of IPL 2026. While Ajinkya Rahane will continue as captain, the management has now handed the vice-captaincy reign to a certain explosive middle-order batter, who has been a part of the franchise since 2018.

The franchise made the sudden announcement on Tuesday, March 24, i.e., less than a week prior to the upcoming IPL 2026 season during their annual meet and greet event.

Rinku Singh promoted by KKR

Rinku Singh has been handed an unprecedented leadership responsibility by the franchise, underlining their growing faith in his stature within the setup. After serving the franchise for the last eight IPL seasons, the cricketer has now been appointed as team’s vice-captain for the upcoming IPL 2026 event.

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The franchise made the announcement during a fan event on Tuesday, March 24, i.e., mere days prior to the launch of the much-awaited tournament. It is worth noting that Rinku will be replacing all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer as team’s new vice-captain. While Iyer served as Ajinkya Rahane’s deputy for KKR last year, he was released by the franchise prior to the IPL 2026 auction.

Rinku Singh’s IPL journey with KKR

Rinku Singh made his IPL debut in the 2018 edition of the tournament, after he was acquired by the KKR franchise for a staggering sum of Rs. 80 lakhs. However, he spent a major part of his first five IPL seasons for the franchise on the sidelines, finding himself in the playing XI in just 17 matches.

He shot himself to nationwide prominence in IPL 2023 by launching five successive sixes in a final over to pull off a thrilling chase for his side against the Gujarat Titans. Since then, he has remained one of the starting members of the team.

Rinku Singh’s captaincy record in domestic cricket

Rinku Singh also captains his state team, Uttar Pradesh in Indian domestic cricket. Under his leadership, the Uttar Pradesh team registered seven wins on the trot to finish at the top of the Elite Group B points table in the recently-concluded 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy season.

However, the team eventually succumbed to a 17-run defeat against Vidarbha in the quarter-final of the tournament.

Why did KKR release Venkatesh Iyer?

Rinku Singh was appointed as KKR’s vice-captain as a replacement of Venkatesh Iyer. The 31-year-old served as Ajinkya Rahane’s deputy last season. However, Iyer was released by the franchise prior to the IPL 2026 auction late last year owing to his underwhelming performance.

Throughout IPL 2025, Venkatesh managed to aggregate just 142 runs in seven innings at a dismal average of 20.28.

KKR to face Mumbai Indians to start off IPL 2026

As per the IPL 2026 schedule as unveiled by the BCCI earlier this month, the KKR franchise will be facing Mumbai Indians in their opening match. The match will be hosted by Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on March 29 later this weekend.

The team will subsequently host SRH, Punjab Kings and LSG at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata over the subsequent week.

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