In a recent interview, Indian Premier League (IPL) founder Lalit Modi shared insights into the early days of the league and revealed that Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) co-owner Shah Rukh Khan initially wanted to have a stake in the Mumbai Indians team. However, with Mukesh Ambani already owning Mumbai Indians, Shah Rukh Khan ultimately chose to invest in KKR alongside Juhi Chawla for a reported INR 570 crore before the IPL began in 2008.
Lalit Modi praised Shah Rukh Khan as the “pillar” of IPL, crediting him for making cricket more accessible to women and children worldwide. Despite not knowing much about cricket initially, Shah Rukh Khan’s involvement in the league helped bring a new level of entertainment to the sport. Lalit Modi highlighted Shah Rukh Khan’s role in attracting celebrities like Deepika Padukone and Akshay Kumar to the IPL, turning it into a cultural phenomenon beyond just cricket.
KKR has seen success as one of the most profitable IPL franchises, winning the tournament thrice. The team recently won the IPL under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer and mentorship of Gautam Gambhir. However, ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, KKR has not retained Gambhir as captain and will have a new coaching staff for the upcoming season.
As KKR prepares for the mega auction, retaining players like Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, and Ramandeep Singh, fans are eager to see who the team will pick up in the auction. The auction will take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, over the next two days, with KKR looking to build a competitive squad for the upcoming season.
