KKR Captain in IPL: From Sourav Ganguly to Ajinkya Rahane – Full List of Kolkata Knight Riders Skippers

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KKR Captain in IPL: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) has appointed Indian batter Ajinkya Rahane as the skipper of the team ahead of IPL 2025 with his compatriot Venkatesh Iyer, the franchise's most expensive player, serving as his deputy.

Following the release of the title-winning captain Shreyas Iyer, there was much speculation about who will lead KKR in the upcoming season. And that question was answered on Monday (March 3), a few weeks before their title defence got underway.

Rahane with prior captaincy experience, having led the Rajasthan Royals in IPL, Indian cricket team and the Mumbai team over the years, edged the others to the KKR captain post.

The Kolkata-based franchise, which is the third most successful side in IPL history with three titles, have seen several captains lead the team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) since its inception in 2008. Here is a look at Kolkata Knight Riders' captains over the years:

Full List of KKR Captains in IPL History

Sourav Ganguly (2008 & 2010): KKR's first captain and their icon from the inaugural edition, Ganguly led the team in 27 matches across the 2008 and 2010 editions. Although, he had seen success on the international stage, he failed to deliver in IPL as he recorded 13 wins and 14 defeats.

Brendon McCullum (2009): The former New Zealand skipper McCullum, who announced the arrival of the lucrative league in 2008 with an unbeaten 158, took over as captain in the 2009 edition, but the Kiwi legend led the team to just 3 wins in 13 matches for a win percentage of just 23.07.

Jacques Kallis (2011): The South African great had one of the shortest stints as skipper of the team. He captained KKR for just two matches, winning one and losing one, before Gautam Gambhir took over and became the franchise's most successful skipper.

Gautam Gambhir (2011-2017): Gambhir led KKR to two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014. With 61 wins in 108 IPL matches, Gambhir signed off his KKR career with a winning percentage of 56.48. During his stint, KKR lost 46 matches and tied one game. He later returned as a mentor to take the team to their third title.

Dinesh Karthik (2018-2020): Following Gambhir's departure to Delhi Capitals, Karthik was appointed the captain, arriving to the team via the mega auction. DK led KKR for three seasons, winning 19 out of 37 games, before stepping down midway through the 2020 season.

Eoin Morgan (2020-2021): Morgan replaced Karthik and guided KKR to the 2021 final, winning 11 out of 24 games. But England's ODI World Cup-winning captain could not inspire the team to a title during his stint as captain.

Shreyas Iyer (2022 & 2024): Arriving as the biggest buy in 2022 Mega Auction, Iyer was immediately named skipper. During his stint, he led the team to their third IPL title. With 17 wins in 29 matches across two seasons, Iyer possessed a 58.62 winning percentage.

Nitish Rana (2023): Rana stepped in as captain in 2023 in Iyer's absence, and led the team to only six wins in 14 matches. With 42.85% win rate, Rana possessed the second lowest win percentage among KKR captains.

Ajinkya Rahane (2025): The former India skipper was named KKR captain ahead of IPL 2025 with Venkatesh Iyer serving as his deputy. In his previous stint as captain in IPL, Rahane led Rajasthan Royals in 24 matches across seasons 2018 to 2018. During his captaincy stint, RR won 9 and lost 15 matches.