Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are reportedly about to shake things up quite a lot before IPL 2027 starts. Latest reports are hinting that the franchise is seriously eyeing Hardik Pandya as their next captain, and yeah that could also mean Ajinkya Rahane’s short run as leader ends sooner than anyone expected.

 

Over the last few days there have been pretty strong rumors doing the rounds that KKR, along with a few other IPL franchises, wants to get Hardik Pandya out of Mumbai Indians. If that swap actually goes through, the expectation is that the all-rounder would step into the captaincy role immediately, without too much delay.

 

What is being said is that KKR feels it needs a new kind of leadership, mainly after two not so great seasons, after they won the IPL title in 2024.

 

Team struggled after the 2024 title

 

KKR lifted the IPL trophy in 2024, under Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy. At that time Gautam Gambhir was also heavily involved as a mentor, and it all looked well balanced. But after Iyer moved on from the franchise, the momentum kind of slipped away fast.

 

Ajinkya Rahane was handed the captaincy ahead of the 2025 season, largely because of his experience and leadership in domestic cricket. Still, things did not really click in the same way, and the team could not maintain the earlier levels.

 

And in the next season of IPL, which is IPL 2026, they finished seventh in a 10-team points table. They won six matches, lost seven matches, and one was called off because of rain. Although the team performed well despite the initial struggle, they failed to reach the playoffs.

 

That late letdown has now brought leadership questions right into the spotlight, plus a few doubts about what the franchise plans to do going forward.

 

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Hardik Pandya becomes the main captaincy choice

 

Hardik Pandya is now being treated as the strongest captaincy option, assuming KKR can successfully finish a deal with Mumbai Indians. But there’s also talk that Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings are keeping an interest in him too, so it may not be a one-team race.

 

There was a report by CricBlogger that said KKR is seriously thinking about a captaincy change before the next season.

 

Source close to development said:

 

“There are enough reasons to look beyond Rahane. The captaincy options are so limited at KKR that the promoters often end up using Shah Rukh Khan’s cut-out for promotional activities.”

 

“Ajinkya Rahane could lose the Kolkata Knight Riders captaincy from next season, with the franchise looking for a new leader, sources told CricBlogger. KKR’s interest in acquiring all-rounder Hardik Pandya is a strong indication that the franchise is planning to replace Rahane with another captaincy candidate.”

 

Right now, there still isn’t any official confirmation coming from KKR or from Mumbai Indians about these reported discussions.

 

Rahane's batting did not fully silence critics

 

On the batting front, Ajinkya Rahane also drew some criticism during IPL 2026. While many top-order batters kept going after the bowlers and built attacking innings, Rahane had a tough time scoring quickly on a regular basis.

 

Still, he finished up as KKR’s highest run-getter. The experienced batter made 390 runs across 13 matches, and stayed the team’s main run producer.

 

But even that contribution was not enough to improve KKR’s overall results in a way that could secure a playoff spot. And with KKRnow scanning new leadership possibilities, Rahane’s captaincy future looks unclear again.

 

Next few weeks could matter a lot for KKR, since the search for a new leader is still ongoing. And if the franchise manages to bring Hardik Pandya into the squad, then the all-rounder could end up becoming the face of a new phase for the two-time IPL champions.