'Not Overthinking Captaincy Yet': Rinku Singh on KKR's Leadership for IPL 2025

Rinku Singh, one of the stars of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), does not care much for the talk surrounding who will be the next KKR captain. KKR, the current IPL champions, let go of Shreyas Iyer, who was their captain last season and have not announced a new leader yet.

Ajinkya Rahane is reportedly another strong candidate for the role of captaincy after great performances during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024. Venkatesh Iyer is an alternative for this position as well. Rinku has been appointed as Uttar Pradesh captain for the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25.

With Rinku now leading his state team, KKR might consider him as the future skipper. In an interview with ESPNCricinfo, Rinku said that he was not thinking of leading his IPL team now.

"I am not thinking too much about the captaincy of KKR in the new IPL season. I am focused on my plans for Uttar Pradesh, as I want my team to regain the trophy we had won for the first time in 2015-16," Rinku said.

Earlier, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the skipper for the Uttar Pradesh team, which lost in the quarter-finals during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The right-handed batsman is going to captain the same side for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, it will be the first time Rinku has captained a senior state team.

KKR has a huge decision to make as IPL 2025 approaches, with no apparent choice for the captain as of yet. While Ajinkya Rahane seems like a decent option, the team may also want to prepare a younger leader for the future. Rinku has been with KKR since 2018, knows the team well, and was one of their top picks in the recent auction.

It really doesn't matter much to Rinku Singh of Kolkata Knight Riders. The current IPL champion KKR has released its previous season captain Shreyas Iyer and hasn't named anyone as the replacement captain so far.

"It was a big opportunity for me to lead Meerut Mavericks in the UPT20 League, and I am happy that I could deliver. I really enjoyed captaincy as it allowed me to learn many things," Rinku told ESPN.

Before becoming the Uttar Pradesh captain, Rinku was also the skipper of the Meerut Mavericks in this year's Uttar Pradesh T20 League. With him as skipper, Meerut Mavericks won the championship, furthering his capabilities as a leader.

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