The groundwork for the 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has already begun. The Apex Council is yet to finalise the number of retentions for each franchise and whether or not to bring back the Right to Match (RTM) cards, but talks are in progress. The mega auction is expected to take place sometime between December 2024 and February 2024.
Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will face a tough task ahead of the auction. They have a bunch of quality players and it will not be easy for the management to make retention choices. However, KKR are expected to retain their captain Shreyas Iyer and marquee stars Andre Russell and Sunil Narine.
Here are the three players KKR can use RTM cards for in IPL 2025:
3. Harshit Rana
Harshit Rana was instrumental in KKR’s success in the last edition. Along with Mitchell Starc and Vaibhav Arora, he wreaked havoc with the new ball in most matches. The right-arm pacer finished the tournament as the fifth leading wicket-taker with 19 wickets from 12 matches at an average of 20.16. His excellent performances in the IPL earned him a place in the national T20I team.
2. Varun Chakravarthy
Varun Chakravarthy has been one of the pillars of the KKR bowling unit for several years now. Known as a mystery spinner, Chakravarthy was the second-highest wicket-taker of the 2024 season (21 wickets in 14 matches). He and Narine have the potential to change the course of the game with their eight overs of spin wizardry. It wouldn’t be a surprise if KKR used the RTM card for the Tamil Nadu spinner.
1. Rinku Singh
Rinku Singh did not have a great outing in the 2024 IPL. However, he earned the faith of KKR and Team India management with his finishing prowess in the 2023 season. With the Kolkata-based franchise likely to retain Narine, Iyer and Russell, there is a high possibility that they will use the RTM card for Rinku. The Uttar Pradesh cricketer has scored 893 runs in 45 IPL matches at a strike rate of 143.34.
Also read: 3 players Sunrisers Hyderabad can use the RTM card
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