Mumbai batsman and Rohit Sharma’s new List A opening partner Angkrish Raghuvanshi has practiced wicketkeeping to hone his skills in the game, which will add to his value in the future. The KKR batsman has hinted at captaincy in the IPL as well.
Kolkata Knight Riders have made changes to their team in almost every way before the next season of IPL. Angkrish Raghuvanshi has proved to be a valuable asset for them in the middle order.
However, looking at the way KKR bought their players during the 2026 IPL mini-auction, every player in the team will be ready to replace the other in the playing eleven. Hence, Angkrishna has been practicing new skill sets to cement his position in the Raghuvanshi XI.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi becomes wicketkeeper to retain his place in KKR XI
Young Angkrish Raghuvanshi entered the IPL in 2024 as a 19-year-old young cricketer. Under the expertise of Gautam Gambhir, he made his debut for KKR and displayed some brilliant control while batting at the top of the order. Raghuvanshi also proved to be KKR’s hero when it came to runs in the last season of IPL.
Recently he was seen playing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Mumbai cricket team. He was part of a 141-run opening stand with Rohit Sharma and was recently interviewed during a match for Mumbai.
When he was asked whether he has been practicing wicketkeeping recently and whether he will keep wickets for KKR in IPL also. Angkrish Raghuvanshi said,I am really enjoying it. It is challenging, but it feels like you are in the game all the time.” He said whether he will keep it for KKR or not, the time will come.
Video | Asked about practicing wicketkeeping to expand his skills ahead of the IPL, Angkrish Raghuvanshi said he is enjoying the challenge and working hard on it. He said, “I’m really enjoying it. It’s challenging, but it feels like you’re in the game all the time.” pic.twitter.com/z4a7pFpCiH
– Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) 29 December 2025
Kolkata Knight Riders spend big money on Indian wicketkeeper Tejashwi Dahiya
Kolkata Knight Riders entered the 2025 IPL auction with the most money and acted accordingly, as they bought the two most expensive players of the auction (Cameron Green and Mathisha Pathirana) and also set the record for the most expensive overseas purchase, surpassing their own set record with Mitchell Starc.
After making most of the purchases, Kolkata Knight Riders still had enough money to invest on any player. After this he came into the field for Delhi wicketkeeper batsman Tejashwi Dahiya, who had performed brilliantly in the Delhi Premier League.
The batsman also had some promising figures for Delhi. In two List A games, he scored a century before making his third List A appearance for Delhi against Saurashtra in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26. At an average of 56.50 in T20s, the batsman scored 113 runs in 4 T20 matches in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this season.
Finn Allen and Tim Seifert are among KKR’s power strikers
Kolkata Knight Riders could not get their hands on players like Sanju Samson or KL Rahul despite desperate attempts to acquire them through trades. Therefore, they had to settle for two New Zealand wicketkeepers, Finn Allen and later Tim Seifert.
Although Allen is not much used as a keeper by his national team as well as other franchise teams, he is a wicketkeeper and an explosive opening batsman. Seifert has similar properties but is used more regularly as a glove wearer.
KKR picked up both these players at a base price of Rs 2 crore and Rs 1.5 crore respectively. Playing for Melbourne Renegades in the BBL, Seifert scored a century in the BBL opener and Finn Allen has also performed brilliantly for Perth Scorchers by scoring 138 runs in 3 matches.
Also read: Nikhil Chaudhary suffered serious injury in BBL 2025-26, taken out of the field
