"Big question of..."- Former KKR star analyzes Kolkata Knight Riders' squad ahead of IPL 2026

The former star member of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Aakash Chopra, has analyzed the squad for the three-time champions heading into the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He raised a few concerns over the batting department and discussed the various combinations that could be put on.

Kolkata, who came into the auction with a massive purse, went on to sign the star all-rounder, Cameron Green, along with the left-arm pacer of Bangladesh, Mustafizur Rahman, and the Sri Lankan speedster, Matheesha Pathirana. Chopra decoded the squad.

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“A topic of discussion would be which four overseas players would play. Among the four overseas players, if they make a keeper-batter open, who will bat in the lower order? That is a big question. They have generally had a keeper opener. They have taken Tim Seifert and Finn Allen this time.” Aakash Chopra expressed on his YouTube channel.

Akash Chopra decodes KKR squad for IPL 2026

Kolkata perhaps had the worst campaign for any side in the IPL that won the trophy in the previous edition. The Knight Riders will hope to turn it around in 2026.

“If I make Narine open with Rahane, play Cameron Green at No. 3, Angkrish Raghuvanshi as a keeper at No. 4 or else get Tejasvi to keep, then Rinku at No. 5, Ramandeep at No. 6, and Rovman Powell at No. 7 or vice versa, and then Tejasvi, how is it looking now? It looks like a better team. You can use Tejasvi if required. If you don’t need him, you can get Anukul Roy.” Chopra addressed.

“They already had 16 overs of bowling. They now have 22-23 overs of bowling. They already had Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Sunil Narine, and Varun Chakaravarthy. Then two or three overs from Cameron Green and four overs from Matheesha Pathirana/Mustafizur Rahman. This is a gun bowling unit.” The former opener of India concluded.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad for IPL 2026:

Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik, Cameron Green, Finn Allen, Matheesha Pathirana, Tejasvi Singh, Kartik Tyagi, Prashant Solanki, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Mustafizur Rahman, Sarthak Ranjan, Daksh Kamra, Rachin Ravindra, Akash Deep