He scored only 142 runs in 11 matches.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Ajinkya Rahane has backed the team’s vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer after his dismal season in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He emphasised the expectations of fans, which often adds extra pressure on the players.
“Sometimes, after having a couple of good seasons, you start expecting too much from yourself and that adds pressure. It’s human. You’ve done well, people expect a lot, and you start trying to prove how good you are instead of just playing your natural game,” he said in the post-match press conference.
The defending champions, KKR, invested a huge purse of INR 23.75 crores to acquire Venkatesh in the IPL 2025 player auction. However, the batter has endured a rough patch this season. He managed to score only 142 runs in 11 matches and one half-century. But the KKR captain believes that the decline in his performance was not a result of the “price tag pressure.”
“See, what I can say is, whether a player is bought for INR 20 crore or INR 2 crore, the attitude on the field shouldn’t change. And I don’t think it did. Venkatesh was focused on the right things. He was training hard, committed during games, and trying to contribute. His attitude was fantastic,” he stressed.
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Moreover, the 36-year-old also discussed how the lean patch of some prominent KKR players resulted in a tough IPL 2025 outing for the defending champions.
“One off-season can happen to any player. It’s not about money or pressure from the price tag. It’s about form and the team dynamics. For us, unfortunately, three to four players were out of form simultaneously and that made the difference,” added Rahane.
The IPL 2024 champions never found the momentum in the IPL 2025. The Men in Purple ended their campaign with only five victories in 14 matches. On the points table, they hold the eighth position with a negative NRR. Skipper Rahane spoke about some closely-fought battles, which could’ve gone their way.
“This season has been kind of up and down for us. We had our chances, but as a unit, we didn’t play really well. If you win close matches, those are the differences. The Punjab Kings game, LSG game and also the CSK game, I thought those two-three games could have been slightly different,” stated the KKR captain.
They finished the IPL 2025 season with a huge loss at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Last edition runner-up Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Rahane and Co. by a huge margin of 110 runs.
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