IPL 2023: Kolkata Knight Riders drop huge hint on new KKR skipper to replace Shreyas Iyer

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) took to their official Twitter handle on Thursday to share an image of a player, hinting at who could be their new captain. With just over a week to go for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, reports claim KKR captain Shreyas Iyer might miss at least the first half of the tournament due to his injury. Amid the worrisome reports, the two-time IPL champions are expected to announce their new skipper in the coming days.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, KKR shared an image of the star batsman Nitish Rana practicing on the field. The photo shows Rana can be seen wearing KKR’s new practice jersey and is also padded up for batting practice. On noticing the photo, Indian cricket fans reacted to it questioning if the 29-year-old will be the new KKR skipper.

🌪️⏳....@NitishRana_27 #AmiKKR #IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/u5rhmFUVox

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 23, 2023

𝙈𝙖𝙞 𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤𝙝 𝙝𝙪𝙢 𝙝𝙖𝙞𝙣, 𝙝𝙪𝙢 𝙝𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙤𝙝 𝙟𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙞... 👊

Kolkata, let's come together and shout for everyone to hear, Dil kahe baar baar, #AmiKKR 💜#IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/SEaqAO27UY

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 22, 2023

As reported earlier, Rana is one of the top contenders for KKR’s captaincy alongside veteran all-rounder Sunil Narine. Rana has led the Delhi T20 side in 12 games in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. During his time as the skipper, he returned with eight wins and four losses. On the other hand, Narine managed to return with only one victory and eight defeats while leading the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders during the inaugural ILT20 in the UAE.

Internet reacts to KKR's tweet

Announce him as captain and launch jersey asap

— Suhit (@_suhitians_) March 23, 2023

Next Captain @arya4789 ☝🏻
What say?

— LOKESH 🇮🇳 (@imnath_lokesh) March 23, 2023

If Shreyas Iyer ruled out
Then our New Captain Ranaji

— MD NAZIRUL HAQUE (@MNHAQUE2021) March 23, 2023

Captain Loading...

— Md Sahid Mondal (@imdsahidmondal) March 23, 2023

Is he leading ?? Please say no, he isnt matured enough as player. Dont think he can lead at this time.

— Mustafa Moudi (@Mustafamoudi) March 23, 2023

Nitish Rana's contribution for KKR over the years

KKR also features top-tier cricketers like Tim Southee and Andre Russell, who could also be selected as the captain. However, Rana seems to be the leading candidate due to his contribution to the team’s success in the recent past. 

During the IPL 2022, Rana finished as the second-highest run scorer for the team after Shreyas Iyer. While the skipper hit 401 runs in 14 games at a strike rate of 134.65, Rana hit 361 runs in equal no. of games at a strike rate of 143.84. He also contributed with two half-centuries.

KKR's full squad for the Indian Premier League 2023

KKR squad: Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Anukul Roy, Rinku Singh, Narayan Jagadeesan, Vaibhav Arora, Suyash Sharma, David Weise, Kulwant Khejrolia, Mandeep Singh, Litton Das, Shakib Al Hasan.