Kolkata Knight Riders "took the wrong decision" by letting Shreyas Iyer and Phil Salt leave after their title-winning campaign in 2024, and unless the three-time IPL champions understand the importance of retaining key players, they cannot be considered serious title contenders, cautioned the legendary Anil Kumble. Iyer exited KKR to join Punjab Kings, whom he led to their first appearance in the IPL final in nearly a decade in the last edition, while Phil Salt -- another vital cog in KKR's success in 2024 -- moved to Royal Challengers Bengaluru, where he played an impactful role in the franchise's maiden title win last year. "Two years ago, KKR won the IPL and lifted their third trophy. Two important cogs in that wheel were Shreyas Iyer and Phil Salt. Both played crucial roles in helping them win but KKR let both of them go," Kumble noted in a JioHotstar release. "There is no consistency from them in terms of player retention. KKR took the wrong decision by letting Shreyas Iyer and
Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday announced the signing of lanky Zimbabwe pacer Blessing Muzarabani ahead of the Indian Premier League season, with the fast bowler pulling out of the Pakistan Super League, which will run concurrently. The right-arm pacer Muzarabani was among the prominent bowlers in the recently-concluded T20 World Cup, finishing as the joint third-highest wicket-taker with 13 scalps as Zimbabwe made it to the Super Eights stage. "KKR have signed Zimbabwe fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani to join the squad for the upcoming Indian Premier League 2026 season," KKR said in a statement. "The 6 ft 8" right-arm quick has emerged as one of Zimbabwe's leading pace bowlers in the shortest format, known for his steep bounce and ability to strike in key phases of the innings." "Muzarabani brings significant T20 experience, having claimed over 90 wickets in more than 80 T20 Internationals at an average of around 21, with best figures of 3/8. His pace and ...
KKR secured marquee players including Cameron Green, Matheesha Pathirana, and Finn Allen, while also signing West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell to fill the gap left by Andre Russell.
The first block of IPL 2026 fixtures will be played across Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad
While the start date has been confirmed, the full schedule and venues for the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League is expected to be released soon
Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman was released by KKR last Saturday, as per a directive given by the BCCI
Mustafizur Rahman was brought by KKR during the IPL 2026 auction for a mammoth ₹9.20 crore price tag
KKR had secured Rahman's services for a hefty Rs 9.20 crore, significantly higher than his base price of Rs 2 crore, after a fierce bidding battle involving Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals.
With this, Green crossed the record held by Mitchell Starc, another Australian cricketer, at Rs 24.75 crore
The auction saw an intense battle between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings for Green, with KKR eventually emerging as the highest bidder.
The accelerated rounds featured further big purchases, including Pathum Nissanka, Jason Holder, Mustafizur Rahman, Liam Livingstone and Josh Inglis.
KKR will walk into the IPL 2026 players auction with the biggest purse, while five-time champions MI will have the smallest purse
PL 2026 mini auction: Cameron Green tops the list at Rs 25.20 cr. Check top 20 costliest buys, including Pathirana, Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer, with teams and prices.
Under the IPL's maximum-fee rule, an overseas player's auction fee is capped at the lower of the highest retention slab and the highest price fetched at the previous mega auction.
The IPL 2026 Auction is scheduled to begin on December 16 (Tuesday), 2025. The IPL mini auction 2026 will begin at 2:30 PM IST.
On December 16, IPL 2026 auction is scheduled to start at 2:30 PM IST in Abu Dhabi. All the ten IPL franchisees are set to spent around Rs 237.55 crore to fill up 77 available slots.
Russell has been a key figure for KKR since 2014, helping the franchise secure three IPL titles.
CSK have released 11 players, the most among the 10 franchises, as they attempt to reset after finishing bottom of the table for the first time in their IPL history
IPL 2026's retention list is defined by three themes: the blockbuster Jadeja-Samson-Curran swap, the release of several global stars, and franchises making sharp value
Russell, who joined KKR in 2014, had been one of the franchise's longest-serving and most influential overseas players