IPL 2025: KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane on the verge of breaking a huge record versus RCB
Ajinkya Rahane: The 18th season of the Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) will start on March 22, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the opening encounter.
KKR became the champions last year by defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer. This time around though, Iyer will play for Punjab Kings and Kolkata is led by Ajinkya Rahane.
Ajinkya Rahane on the verge of creating a big record
KKR's newly appointed captain Ajinkya Rahane is on the verge of scripting history in the opening match of IPL 2025 versus RCB. He is set to become the first Indian player to captain three teams in the IPL.
He will achieve this feat at the Eden Gardens versus Rajat Patidar-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru. In the mega auction of IPL 2025, KKR bought Rahane for Rs 1.50 crore. He was later made the captain by the franchise
Rahane has been the captain of these teams
Ajinkya made his captaincy debut in the IPL for Rising Pune Super Giants during the 2017 season. He captained the team against Delhi Capitals on April 11, 2017 at the MCA Stadium in Pune. He was then appointed captain of Rajasthan Royals for IPL 2018 and also led the team in the 2019 season before being replaced by Steve Smith.
Which players have captained three different IPL Teams?
Now a total of three players have led three teams in IPL. These include Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene along with Australia's Steve Smith. Sangakkara captained Punjab Kings in 13 matches, Deccan Chargers in 25 matches and Sunrisers Hyderabad in nine matches.
Former Australian captain Steven Smith led Pune Warriors India (PWI) in one match of IPL 2012, Rajasthan Royals (RR) kn 27 games and Rising Pune Super Giants (RPS) in 15 encounters. On the other hand, Jayawardene led Punjab Kings in one match, Kochi Tuskers Kerala in 13 matches of IPL 2011 and Delhi Capitals in 16 matches in two seasons (IPL 2012 and 2013).
Iyer will soon join Rahane's club
IPL 2024 winning captain Shreyas Iyer will join Rahane in this list when he takes the field for Punjab Kings on Tuesday (March 25). Iyer, who will lead Punjab Kings in IPL 2025, has previously captained Delhi Capitals in 41 IPL matches in three seasons and KKR in 29 matches in two seasons (IPL 2022 and 2024).
The 30-year-old right-handed batsman was bought by Punjab Kings for Rs 26.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. He is the only captain in IPL history to play the final with two franchises and in the 2025 season, he would like to become the first captain to win the IPL title with two teams.
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