Chetan Sakariya of Rajasthan Royals appeals during match 54 of the Vivo Indian Premier League between the KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS and the RAJASTHAN ROYALS held at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates on the 7th October 2021. (Sportzpics)
Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday announced that Chetan Sakariya will replace medium pacer Umran Malik for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Malik has been ruled out of the season due to an injury.
Sakariya has represented India in an ODI and two T20Is and has played 19 IPL games, scalping 20 wickets. Sakariya, a left-arm medium pacer, joins KKR for Rs 75 lakh.
Kolkata will be led by Ajinkya Rahane this season after they released title-winning skipper Shreyas Iyer ahead of the 2025 IPL auctions. Also, all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer was named as the vice-captain as IPL season is slated to begin on March 22.
🚨𝗖𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘆𝗮 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗔 𝗜𝗣𝗟 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱
The left-arm fast bowler is all set to don Purple & Gold for another year 💜💛 pic.twitter.com/Zxcl0rlxat
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 16, 2025
The 36-year-old Rahane marked a reunion with KKR after having previously featured for the side in the 2022 season. The Mumbaikar was snapped up for Rs 1.5 crore during the IPL 2025 Mega Auction in November 2024. Rahane had a prolific domestic season with Mumbai, leading them to the Irani Cup and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy titles.
Rahane was at his prolific best in the SMAT T20s and topped the batting charts, smashing 469 runs in eight innings, averaging 58.62 with a 164.56 strike rate and five half-centuries. Meanwhile, Venkatesh was released to the pool ahead of the mega auction but received a whopping Rs 23.75 crore bid from KKR, making him the third-most expensive Indian player in the league.
Kolkata will start the 18th edition of the IPL with a clash against perennial IPL bridesmaids Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Eden Gardens on March 22. After winning the IPL title last season, KKR come into this edition of the IPL with three titles.
The IPL 2025 Playoffs will be played across Hyderabad and Kolkata. Hyderabad will host Qualifier 1 and the Eliminator on May 20 and May 21 respectively. The action will then shift to Kolkata, the city where IPL 2025 started. Eden Gardens will host Qualifier 2 on May 23. The IPL 2025 final will be played on May 25.
