KKR 2014 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Every cricket fan has been awaiting the return for the 17th edition of the Indian Premier League. The two-month extravaganza enables the fans of the sport to watch their favourite players clash at the biggest stage of them all on a daily basis. The IPL has surely been one of the best things that has happened for India and for the cricket community across the world. It has given the players a chance to show their class in front of the public eye against the very best individuals.
The public stay glued to their screens and tend to watch all the matches in the league over two months. The jerseys are also one of the things that attracts the fans. An enthusiastic supporter tends to purchase the kit of their favourite IPL franchise more often than not. Kolkata Knight Riders is one of the teams that has a loyal and loving fan base.
Also Check: CSK IPL jerseys from 2008 to 2024
Let’s take a look at how the jersey of Kolkata Knight Riders has evolved over the years in the Indian Premier League:
1. 2008
KKR 2008 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Kolkata Knight Riders was one of the most talked about franchises ahead of the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League. The fans were able to witness one of the most stylish kits of the time as the famous Black and Gold jersey was made available for the public. In the maiden season of the league, KKR had three sponsors on their kit. Reebok featured around the left side of the kit, while Nokia was present around the chest region. Whilst, HDIL featured at the back of the jersey of the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Sourav Ganguly-led franchise had a subpar campaign in 2008. Despite a blistering start in the opening game of the league, they were unable to keep their form up to mark as they lost a fair few matches. They ended up at 6th position with 13 points from 14 games as they missed out on qualifying for the knockout stages of the competition.
2. 2009
KKR 2009 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
The franchise decided to tinker just a little bit with their jersey as they made the gold colour in the kit more prominent. There were also additions of various sponsors who got their name featured in the sleeves of the kit. Sprite, the popular beverage brand got their name featured on the left sleeve just above the Dish TV logo. Videocon D2H found its logo present on the left sleeve above the IPL logo. Star Plus was featured at the back of the Kolkata Knight Riders jersey.
However, the change in jerseys did not yield results on the field for the franchise. The Kolkata-based side finished bottom of the league standings with only three wins from their 14 games. Despite having a world-class team on paper, they were unable to perform on the field when it mattered the most.
3. 2010
KKR 2010 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Ahead of the third edition of the competition, Kolkata Knight Riders decided to revamp their jersey. The management decided to move away from the traditional Black and Gold jersey. They adopted the Purple and Gold colours prior to the new season. There were two changes with the sponsors as a new brand, XXX, was added to the back of the kit. Royal Stag, was also added as one of the sponsors, and featured on the left sleeve of the kit.
Once again, the change did not bring about success for the franchise. However, there was slight improvement in the results as they finished with 7 wins from their 14 games. Although, that was not enough for them to make it to the play-offs this time around as well.
4. 2011
KKR 2011 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
For the first time, there wasn’t any major change to the jersey of the Kolkata Knight Riders. Only one sponsor was changed and once again it was at the back of the jersey. The brand Matrix, collaborated with the team and was visible at the back side of the kit.
In a rare instance, Kolkata Knight Riders had one of their best finishes as they were able to qualify for the play-offs. This was the first time they were able achieve this feat, however, Mumbai Indians defeated them in the Eliminator and they had to bow out of the competition.
5. 2012
KKR 2012 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
After a year of no change, Kolkata Knight Riders made a brisk change to the jersey as they had a change in the fabric of the jersey. Apart from that, another major change in the jersey was of the sponsor. Rose Valley’s logo could be seen near the right side of the jersey.
This was one of the best seasons for Kolkata Knight Riders as they became champions of the Indian Premier League for the first time. Under the captaincy of Gautam Gambhir, they were able to steam past defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the final of the tournament.
6. 2013
KKR 2013 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
After an iconic season which saw them lifting the title for the first time, Kolkata Knight Riders decided to go with an unchanged jersey for a second consecutive season. For the first time, there were no additions to the jersey and there were no modifications to the positions of the existing sponsor brands.
This move did not make sense, since they were not able to defend their crown. The franchise endured a poor run of form and in the end they ended up with ten losses from their 16 games in the season. At the end of the tournament, they finished at the seventh spot, which was not the way the fans expected their season to go at all.
7. 2014
KKR 2014 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
After a season of new changes, Kolkata Knight Riders came out swinging since they changed the style and design of the jersey. They had gold-drained portions over the shoulders instead of the stripes which were seen in the previous seasons. USPA, the popular clothing brand, was assigned a small area around the right side of the jersey. Sansui was the new brand that was represented at the back area of the kit.
Following a dismal performance in the 2013 season, the franchise made a stunning comeback as they were able to clinch the title. They were able to seal the deal in the final against Kings XI Punjab which ended up being a close affair between the two teams. However, with three balls remaining, KKR finished the match to lift their second IPL title.
8. 2015
KKR 2015 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Shortly after a stunning victory in the previous campaign, the franchise added fire elements to the jersey. These elements were added near the shoulder portion of the jersey. It gave a different side to the already great jersey. There was also a major change in the sponsors department, as for the very first time, Gionee was added to the chest region of the jersey.
The changes in jersey might have also led to the decline of the Kolkata Knight Riders as they were not able to defend their Indian Premier League crown once again. They did not make it to the play-offs as they missed out on the final spot for qualification by a margin of just one point.
9. 2016
KKR 2016 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Kolkata Knight Riders decided to make some modifications to the jersey this year. They added two stars on top of the franchise logo to show the number of titles they had lifted till then. Luxcozi was being represented at the right side of the jersey. Meanwhile, the SRMB TMT logo could be seen above the Colours TV logo on the right side of the jersey.
The franchise after a season’s halt were able to qualify for the play-offs of the Indian Premier League as they finished 4th in the league standings. Although, their play-off journey was short-lived, since Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated them in the Eliminator round this season.
10. 2017
KKR 2017 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
The franchise decided to revamp the jersey altogether in the hopes of a change in fortune. They created one of the most iconic jerseys for the team as the purple and gold could be seen all over the jersey in a diagonal form. All the sponsors remained the same and there were no position modifications as well.
The Gautam-Gambhhir led franchise was able to finish fourth once again this season. However, this time around they were able to win the eliminator but succumbed to the eventual champions, Mumbai Indians in the Qualifier 2 of the tournament.
11. 2018
KKR 2018 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Kolkata Knight Riders went back to their original design with some small changes in their style. The gold-dotted portions around the shoulder region returned. There were a few changes in the sponsors as Nokia returned around the chest region of the jersey. Exide was present around the right sleeve of the jersey, meanwhile Royal Stag moved to the left sleeve of the jersey.
The team continued its great form and maintained their consistency as they qualified for the play-offs once again after finishing 3rd in the league standings. But they were once again defeated in the second qualifier after Sunrisers Hyderabad breezed past them in the knockout match.
12. 2019
KKR 2019 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
The team management decided to continue the trend of changing the design and look of the jersey. The much-loved gold portions around the shoulder regions were gone and the jersey came out to be more purple. There were small gold lines along the side of the kit which looked omni-present. One change in sponsor was there as Jio’s logo could be seen at the back of the kit.
For the first time in three years, the Kolkata-based franchise was not able to qualify for the play-offs. This time around, they finished fifth, only falling short of the knockout rounds on Net run rate.
13. 2020
KKR 2020 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
It was another year and another design change for the Kolkata Knight Riders as they brought in small gold squares all over the purple jersey. However, there was a major sponsor change ahead of the new season. MPL Sports partnered with the franchise and their logo was added to the chest area of the jersey.
The Kolkata Knight Riders franchise once again failed to make it to the play-offs stage of the Indian Premier League. Just like last year, they failed to make it due to a lower net run rate at the end of the season.
Also Check: Punjab Kings (PBKS) IPL jerseys over the years
14. 2021
KKR 2021 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
Kolkata Knight Riders went for gold vertical lines over the purple jersey in one of the major design changes to the kit. They had partnered with education company Unacademy, who were given their logo at the back of the kit. Astral Pipes was added at the right sleeve of the purple and gold jersey. This was the only sponsor-related change in the jersey.
The franchise had one of their best seasons as they were able to qualify for the play-offs. They ended up reaching the final of the Indian Premier League this season. However, Chennai Super Kings pipped them to the title after an epic match between the two teams.
15. 2022
KKR 2022 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
After a long hiatus, Kolkata Knight Riders brought back the iconic Gold sized portions around the shoulder region of the jersey. They also added a gold design around the stomach region of the kit. Winzo was the new sponsor that collaborated with the franchise and they were given the spot above the gold design near the chest portion. JOY was another sponsor that was added to the sleeve of the kit for this season.
But, some old designs brought back some old luck as the team failed to make it to the play-offs as they finished 7th in the Indian Premier League standings. It was a disappointing campaign overall for them and one that they would look to forget off easily.
16. 2023
KKR 2023 (Photo Source -Twitter/X)
The team management were quick to make changes to the jersey as they removed the gold squares around the shoulder region. They replaced it with the gold lines along the side of the jersey. My Fab 11 was the new main sponsor for the franchise as it got the area around the chest region. BKT was the other new sponsor that was added to the back of the jersey ahead of this season.
Kolkata Knight Riders’ fortunes however didn’t change at all as they once again failed to make it to the latter stages of the competition. They did not make any progress as they finished at the exact same position as the previous season, which is 7th. The Nitish Rana-led side finished with just 6 wins from their 14 games.
Also Check: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) IPL jerseys over the years