Kolkata Knight Riders head into the IPL 2026 mini-auction with the largest purse in the league – Rs 64.30 crorealong with 13 available slots and six overseas vacancies. With that financial muscle, KKR are expected to be one of the most aggressive franchises at the auction table as they look to reshape their core.
Kolkata Knight Riders squad overview
Probable playing XII:
Ajinkya Rahane, Sunil Narine, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Wicketkeeper, Middle-order batter, Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Pacer
Other squad members:
Manish Pandey, Anukul Roy, Umran Malik
What Kolkata Knight Riders need at the auction
The biggest task for KKR is finding a like-for-like replacement for the legendary all-rounder they parted ways witha player who defined their balance for years. Cameron Green has clearly emerged as the franchise’s primary target to fill the void left by Andre Russelland with the largest purse available, KKR will back themselves to win any bidding war for the Australian all-rounder.
The opening combination is another area that will shape KKR’s auction strategy. The team must decide whether to persist with Ajinkya Rahane and Sunil Narine at the top, especially with Narine’s batting returns tapering off recently. If they choose to revamp the opening pair, KKR are likely to target top-order batters aggressivelyand it would not be surprising if one of them is also a wicketkeeper.
The wicketkeeping slot is a long-standing issue for the franchise. KKR released all three wicketkeepers from their 2025 squadand since 2022, they have rotated through eight different keepers. Securing a first-choice wicketkeeper who can lock down the role for multiple seasons will be one of their most important objectives at this auction.
Selection clarity in the middle order will depend on how successful KKR are with their primary targets. The futures of Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Rovman Powell in the playing XII will hinge on whether the franchise lands an elite opener or middle-order batter.
Bowling reinforcements are also on the agenda. With Anrich Nortje and Spencer Johnson releasedKKR will be in the market for an overseas fast bowlerparticularly one who can operate at the death. Given their financial flexibility, a move for Matheesha Pathirana would not come as a surprise.
Potential targets for Kolkata Knight Riders
With budget and flexibility on their side, KKR could dominate multiple bidding battles:
- Cameron Green – primary all-rounder target to replace Andre Russell
- Venkatesh Iyer – Indian all-round option and top-order cover
- Prithvi Shaw – aggressive opening batter
- Sarfaraz Khan – middle-order reinforcement
- Quinton de Kock – wicketkeeper-opener option
- Jamie Smith – young wicketkeeper-batter
- Jonny Bairstow – experienced opener and wicketkeeper
- Kartik Sharma – Indian wicketkeeper backup
- Matheesha Pathirana – overseas death-overs pacer
- Matt Henry – new-ball and death-overs pace option
- Tushar Raheja – domestic batting depth
Auction outlook
Kolkata Knight Riders are perfectly positioned to reshape their squad around a new core. With the biggest purse, multiple overseas slots, and clear positional needs, KKR have the opportunity to address long-standing issues in the wicketkeeping departmentreplace their marquee all-rounderand reinforce the pace attack. How decisively they act at the auction table could define their IPL 2026 campaign.
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