Ajinkya Rahane was in phenomenal form in 2024, especially in the shortest format of the game. The Mumbai batter finished the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as the leading run-getter, re-establishing himself as a solid and reliable batter in T20s. This could come as good news for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ahead of IPL 2025 as they can potentially use the veteran as an opener instead of deploying him at number three.
Why Rahane would be KKR’s best opening option in IPL 2025
The Mumbai batter finished with 469 runs from 9 matches in SMAT, averaging 58.62. With five half-centuries to his name, Rahane was the best batter for Mumbai, with no other teammate of his barring Shreyas Iyer making it to the list of top ten run-getters. While KKR would want to use Quinton de Kock as an opener along with Sunil Narine, it would be wise for the team to rather use the veteran instead of the former.
This would mean an unconventional approach must be taken, resulting in de Kock having to bat at some other position. But that shouldn’t be a problem for KKR as they are very familiar with experimenting with the batting order. After all, the experiment with Narine by moving him to the top-order proved to be a blockbuster hit.
| Mat | Runs | Ave | SR | 4s | 6s |
| 9 | 469 | 58.62 | 164.56 | 46 | 19 |
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KKR managed to get a steal deal at IPL 2025 auction by acquiring the services of veteran Ajinkya Rahane at his base price of Rs 1.5 cr. For majority of his career, Rahane was considered a Test player and not a T20 material. He broke that myth during his stint with CSK in IPL 2023 and 2024.
| Mat | Runs | Avg | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 185 | 4642 | 30.14 | 123.42 | 2 | 30 | 478 | 103 |
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