Nitish Rana has been selected captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the next IPL 2023 season, taking over for Shreyas Iyer, who faces the possibility of missing the entire season due to back surgery.
On Monday, left-handed batter Nitish Rana was selected as Kolkata Knight Riders’ new captain for the 2018 Indian Premier League season. Shreyas Iyer, who is in danger of missing the entire season due to a back injury, will be replaced by Rana.
In fact, KKR’s statement suggested that Iyer’s odds of making a speedy recovery from his injury are low.
“Nitish Rana would lead the team as captain while Shreyas Iyer rests from a back injury. While we remain optimistic that Shreyas will make a full recovery and play a significant role in the upcoming IPL 2023 season, we are confident that Nitish, who has captained his state side in white ball cricket and has been with KKR since 2018, will do a fantastic job in Shreyas’s absence “The statement came from KKR.
“We are also certain that he will receive the necessary off-field support from head coach Chandrakant Pandit and his team, and that the highly experienced leaders in the squad will offer the necessary on-field support for Nitish. Both he and Shreyas have our best wishes as he transitions into his new position “It went on to say.
Rana has captained Delhi in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, however the team’s performance has been disappointing. It is assumed that he will be tasked with putting into practise the plans laid forth by coach Pandit, team boss Venky Mysore, and ex-Mumbai Ranji star Abhishek Nayar.
It’s worth noting that Delhi didn’t include Rana in their Ranji Trophy squad this year because of his poor performance and clumsy approach to red-ball cricket.
In 12 T20 matches for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Rana has led Delhi to eight victories and four losses.
The 29-year-old batsman has been with KKR since the team acquired him before the 2018 season.
Scored 1744 runs at a strike rate of 135.61 in 74 games for KKR with Rana at the helm. On April 1, KKR will kick off their season at Mohali against the Punjab Kings.