KKR should retain Shreyas Iyer, don’t think Shah Rukh Khan will allow him to go: Aakash Chopra

Akash Chopra and Shreyas Iyer. (Source – Twitter/X)

Former India international Aakash Chopra expects defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders not to part ways with their captain Shreyas Iyer. Leading up to the mega-auction, various reports claimed that the Mumbai batter might leave the franchise as the three-time champions are eyeing to bring Suryakumar Yadav into the set-up. However, as per Chopra, the franchise should trust Shreyas, especially after Gautam Gambhir left following a successful season.

The 46-year-old also added that KKR should not try to repurchase him using RTM as he is the team’s captain and it can hurt him. He wants the franchise to spend INR 18 crore to retain him and also noted that co-owner Shah Rukh Khan might not let Shreyas leave after winning KKR’s third title.

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“You want to firstly retain the captain, who is Shreyas Iyer. If 18 crores go, let them go because you won’t get a captain. He is your winning captain. If Gautam (Gambhir) isn’t there, retain your captain to maintain some continuity. There is no doubt that you should retain Shreyas Iyer,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

“You might get Shreyas Iyer for 18 crores using the RTM but never do that with the captain because eventually this game is played by humans, and humans have hearts, and thereby emotions. Who will understand emotions better than Khan sahab (Shahrukh Khan)? So I feel he won’t allow Shreyas Iyer to go,” the former India opener added.

KKR should retain Rinku, Russell, Narine: Chopra

Apart from Shreyas, Chopra wants KKR to retain Rinku Singh, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine. He believes that if Rinku is available in the auction, he would easily fetch at least INR 14 crore, which is why, he advised the team management to retain him. Russell and Narine, on the other hand, are the heart and soul of KKR and Chopra feels that retaining them for any amount is worth it.

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“Second – since I am looking from the Indian perspective, if Rinku Singh comes to the market, he will be sold for 14 crores. So retain Rinku Singh for sure. Retain both Andre Russell and Sunil Narine. The problem is that if you retain both, one will be for 11 crores but the fourth retention will be for 18 crores. I would say it is still worth it,” Chopra said.