Every season of the Indian Premier League is a special event, and the preparation of a new season always begins 5-6 months before the scheduled timing. As like all ten teams along with BCCI are preparing for the IPL 2025. Kolkata Knight Riders, who won their third IPL title in 2024, will look to make some strong decisions as they will eye to defend their title.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) retained six players ahead of the IPL 2026 auction, notably excluding captain Shreyas Iyer, which surprised many fans. The top retention is Rinku Singh, whose salary jumped to INR 13 crore. Other retained players include Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine, and Andre Russell, each earning INR 12 crore, while Harshit Rana and Ramandeep Singh will earn INR 4 crore each. After these retentions, KKR has INR 51 crore remaining in their purse for the auction.
KKR IPL 2026 Retained Players list
| Player | Role |
|---|---|
| Ajinkya Rahane | Batsman |
| Angkrish Raghuvanshi | Batsman |
| Anukul Roy | All-rounder |
| Harshit Rana | Bowler |
| Manish Pandey | Batsman |
| Ramandeep Singh | All-rounder |
| Rinku Singh | Batsman |
| Rovman Powell | All-rounder |
| Sunil Narine | All-rounder |
| Umran Malik | Bowler |
| Vaibhav Arora | Bowler |
| Varun Chakaravarthy | Bowler |
KKR IPL 2026 Released Players list
| Player Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Andre Russell | All-rounder |
| Quinton de Kock | WK-Batter |
| Anrich Nortje | Pacer |
| Moeen Ali | All-rounder |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | WK-Batter |
| Spencer Johnson | Pacer |
| Venkatesh Iyer | All-rounder |
| Luvnith Sisodia | Wicketkeeper |
| Chetan Sakariya | Pacer |
| Mayank Markande | Spinner |
Trade Out List
| Player Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Mayank Markande | Spinner |
Diclaimer: Above content includes predictions and expert analyses for IPL 2025. These are based on current trends and data but actual player retentions and selections are subject to franchise management decisions and may differ from these predictions. We will update in real time as official confirmations come in. Keep visiting UC Cricket.
