On March 27, the Kolkata Knight Riders announced the appointment of star batter Nitish Rana as their new captain as the team sought to move past its problem with leadership. Fans were a little taken aback by Rana’s selection as the new captain because he has little prior experience leading others in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Yet on March 28, Rana demonstrated his willingness to assume more responsibility by buckling under the burden of wearing the leadership ring.
Delhi won eight out of twelve games while being led by the 29-year-old batsman during the most recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Rana’s challenges will certainly increase though as he takes the helm of one of the top IPL clubs. Tuesday, March 28, at the official news conference, Rana stomped on all discussions of added pressure.
“It (leadership) is not new for me, for the last 2-3 years I have been part of the leadership group. I have got the captaincy tag this time. For the last 2-3 years, I have been part of the leadership role and I am not going to take extra pressure just because of the tag. It’s not good for my game also. I don’t think there is anything new. I love taking responsibility,” Rana said on March 28.
“After 10 days also, there will be pressure. Captaincy is a tag. Whenever you do something for the first time in life, there will be a bit of pressure. As a batter, I have played more than 100 games. A player will be scared of getting out in the first few deliveries,” Rana added.
Rana has been part of the Knight Riders for the last five editions and has played under the leadership of several players, including Dinesh Karthik and Shreyas Iyer. When asked about his idol captain, Rana said that he will lead the team in his own style and assured that his team will bring the right results in IPL 2023.
“There is a responsibility and I like taking responsibility. Shreyas Iyer had an unfortunate injury, we all know that. It’s very unfortunate, and we got the news of not having such a senior and main player at the last moment. But if you keep it aside, the team looks good. And I think the direction that we are taking with this team, I think it will bring the right results.”
“I don’t prefer following anyone (idol) like that. I want to do it in my style because if I try and follow someone in terms of captaincy, I will lose myself, and my individuality. I want to captain in my way and take the team ahead in my own style,” Rana concluded
