Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], March 24 : Star Indian batter Rinku Singh has been named the vice-captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the upcoming Indian Premier League 2026, taking on a new leadership role within the team.
Rinku will serve as the deputy to Ajinkya Rahane, stepping into the vice-captaincy role previously held by Venkatesh Iyer, who was acquired by defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 7 crore ahead of the season.
The announcement was made by KKR CEO Venky Mysore at the Knights Unplugged 3.0 event held in Kolkata on Tuesday.
"On behalf of everyone in the franchise, we're really delighted to announce that Rinku Singh will be the Vice-captain of the team. Rinku joined KKR in 2018 and has been a regular in the team ever since," said Venky Mysore.
Rinku's form will be a big concern for the Knight Riders, as he had a sub-par T20 World Cup 2026, scoring just 24 runs in five innings. Also in the IPL, his performances have witnessed a decline since his breakout season in 2023, in which five successive sixes against Yash Dayal in a 200-plus run-chase against the Gujarat Titans (GT) launched him into stardom.
Rinku's 2023 season saw him score 474 runs in 14 innings at an average of 59.25 and a strike rate of 149.52, with four fifties.
However, since then, he has scored just 374 runs in 22 innings at an average of 23.37, with a best score of 38*.
Rinku has played 59 matches for the side, scoring 1,099 runs at an average of 30.53.
KKR will begin their IPL campaign against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on March 29.