Ahead of the next Indian Premier League season, the Kolkata Knight Riders have signed Chetan Sakariya to replace Umran Malik. Umran is out for the season due to an unidentified injury. The reigning champions paid INR 75 lakh for the Jammu & Kashmir pacer.
It’s interesting to note that Sakariya played for KKR during their championship run the previous season. He did not, however, play in any of the team’s games throughout the season. Since he was released prior to the massive auction that took place in November 2024, it makes sense that he was not included in the franchise’s post-season preparations. Chetan Sakariya, who is also expected to be paid INR 75 lakh, would likely see this as a fantastic chance to improve his league hopes.
From 2021 to 2023, the 27-year-old left-arm seamer participated in 19 matches in the prestigious T20 competition. The Rajasthan Royals participated in 14 of the 19 IPL 2021 games.
Chetan Sakariya then played in just five games for the Delhi Capitals, taking three wickets each.
The IPL 2025 season is set to start on Saturday, March 22. At Kolkata’s famous Eden Gardens, KKR will play Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the tournament’s opening match. Regarding Sakariya’s 20-over career, he has taken 65 wickets at a respectable economy rate of 7.69 in 46 games. Since July 2021, when he made his white-ball debut for India, he has not worn the national uniform.
Speaking of Umran, the past year has been a fairly bad one for him. The right-arm speedster’s IPL 2022 breakthrough was followed by two seasons in which he was limited to eight and one games. A series of subpar performances in 2023 led to his dismissal from the team, but the tearaway fast was sidelined for the 2024 tournament because of an injury.
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