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News India Live, Digital Desk: The trumpet of IPL 2026 is about to sound, but as the captain of three-time champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Ajinkya Rahane The debate on the name is still going on. Famous commentator and former cricketer Aakash Chopra has made a shocking claim in a recent interview. According to Akash, KKR will get the opportunity only after the mega auction of IPL 2025. Rinku Singh Should have handed over the captaincy. He argued that instead of a ‘condition apply’ captain like Rahane, Rinku Singh could have proved to be a long race horse.
Why was Rinku and not Rahane Akash’s first choice?
Aakash Chopra criticized KKR’s auction strategy in a program of ‘RevSportz’ and said that the team has tied its own hands for captaincy. According to him, there were three main reasons behind making Rinku Singh the captain:
Regularity: Rinku Singh is a ‘regular’ member of the team and there is no doubt about his place in the playing XI.
Batting Flexibility: The ‘condition’ with Rahane is that he is effective only in the top order or opening. In contrast, Rinku can bat at any number and is not constrained by the batting position.
Leadership Experience: Rinku Singh has captained Uttar Pradesh (UP) in domestic cricket and has also recently shown his leadership abilities in the UP T20 League.
Auction mistake: ‘Captain cannot be your third option’
Aakash Chopra taunted, “KKR did not even go to buy the captain in the auction. When big names (like Shreyas Iyer) came, you should have bet on them. Captain is very important in T20. You took Rahane in the accelerated auction and made him the captain. Captaincy choice should never be your third option.” He further gave an example and said that when youngsters like Riyan Parag, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju Samson can get a chance, then why not Rinku?
IPL 2026: Rahane faces a mountain of challenges
Even though Aakash Chopra took Rinku’s side, Ajinkya Rahane He will take charge of KKR this season. There is a lot of pressure on Rahane after the team finished 8th last season. This time the new coach of the team Abhishek Nair and mentor dwayne bravo Rahane will have to prove both his captaincy and batting. KKR is aiming to win its fourth trophy, but it will be interesting to see whether Rahane will be able to keep the players united amid these ‘leadership’ discussions going on within the team.