Kolkata, December 19: India opener K L Rahul was on Thursday (December 19) named captain of the Kings XI Punjab franchise for the IPL 2020.
"We are happy to appoint Rahul as our captain for the upcoming season. He has been through a lot in the last year or so and has now come back strongly," KXIP co-owner Ness Wadia told PTI on the day of the IPL auction in Kolkata.
"He has silenced his critics. You will get to see his ability not just as a batsman but also as a captain. He was our unanimous choice," he added.
KXIP had bought Rahul for a whopping Rs 11 crore ahead of the 2018 season.
Rahul's ascendancy to captaincy was expected after R Ashwin was traded to Delhi Capitals last month. Rahul has been in tremendous form of late with him striking a hundred in the second ODI against the West Indies at Visakhapatnam that helped India post a near 400-run total and score a series-levelling victory.