‘He Has the Experience’: Veteran Piyush Chawla Backs KKR’s Decision to Elect Ajinkya Rahane as Skipper Over Venkatesh Iyer

Former India cricketer Piyush Chawla has declared his support for Ajinkya Rahane in the upcoming IPL 2025 season by backing up KKR's decision to elect the veteran cricketer as their new skipper. Chawla believes that he has leadership experience and has been in exceptional form for the Chennai Super Kings in the past two seasons. The former MI star also opined on the challenge which the defending champions would face as they head into the new season.

Piyush Chawla Backs KKR's Decision To Make Ajinkya Rahane As Coach

The Kolkata Knight Riders have named Ajinkya Rahane as their new IPL captain for the 2025 season. The decision was admired by fans, but questions were also raised about not selecting Venkatesh Iyer as the new skipper. Given Venkatesh's long tenure with the franchise, there was speculation that Iyer would be the next in line to inherit the captaincy. However, veteran Piyush Chawla expressed support for the team's decision to make Rahane the skipper.

"He looked exceptional in the last two years while playing for CSK. Apart from that, he has the experience. He has captained India and has captained in franchise cricket. The challenge for any team after the mega-auction is to set their playing XI. Even if you have retained your core, you have to set the remaining five or six players. The earlier they do that, the better it would be for the team," Piyush Chawla said.

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KKR CEO Reveals Why Ajinkya Rahane Was Elected As The Skipper

Kolkata Knight Riders CEO Venky Mysore has also voiced his opinion over the management's decision to hand the captaincy reins to Ajinkya Rahane. He believes that the captaincy role would be exhausting for a youngster like Venkatesh Iyer and that it would require steady hands and a lot of maturity, making Rahane the best fit for the role.

“IPL is quite an intense tournament. We think very well of Venkatesh Iyer, but at the same time, it [captaincy] is taxing on a youngster. We have seen lots of people having lots of challenges with it [handling captaincy] as they go forward. It takes a very steady hand, takes a lot of maturity and experience, which we felt Ajinkya brings with him,” Mysore said while speaking to ESPNcricinfo.

The Kolkata Knight Riders will face off against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the season-opener clash at the iconic Eden Gardens on March 22, 2025.

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