3 MI players in IPL 2025 who were earlier in KKR ft. Suryakumar Yadav
The Mumbai Indians (MI) host the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 12th match of the ongoing Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday, March 31. MI, playing their first match at home after two away defeats, will have the pressure of expectations while KKR, sitting sixth in the table, will pose a threat.
MI's spin-bowling options have looked a bit undercooked this season, although the presence of young left-arm wrist spinner Vignesh Puthur has livened the scene up to some extent. With the bat, stalwart Rohit Sharma is yet to get going, and this will cause a major headache for their management.
Quite interestingly, several current MI players have turned up for KKR in the past, and this adds a sense of a battle-within-the-battle in this match. These players, cognisant of the strategies and tactics used by the visitors, will have an edge while also disbursing sage advice to their teammates during meetings.
In this listicle, we take a look at three MI players who were earlier in KKR.
#3 Mujeeb Ur Rahman
Afghan mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman played for KKR in 2024 before being snapped up by MI in the mega auction ahead of the 2025 season. Rahman is known for his accurate lengths and wily pace while bowling inside the powerplay and variety in deliveries when operating outside it.
Unfortunately, Rahman was ruled out of the 2024 edition of the tournament with an injury, and KKR had to replace him with his compatriot Allah Ghazanfar, also a mystery spinner. Rahman's conventional off-breaks have held him in good stead while playing for the SunRisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings in the past.
The 24-year-old has picked up a total of 20 wickets in the IPL in as many matches, and is nowhere near as successful as his fellow countryman Rashid Khan, who took India by storm with his antics for the SunRisers Hyderabad and now Gujarat Titans. However, he will have a major say with the ball in hand for MI this year.
#2 Trent Boult
Left-arm pacer Trent Boult is another current MI player who earlier plied his trade for KKR. The Kiwi is known for his searing yorkers as well as inswinging deliveries that leave right-handed batters with very little room and fewer seconds for decision-making. Quite naturally, he is among the best in the business.
Boult, who has represented five teams in the cash-rich league, turned up for KKR in the 2017 season. He did not have the best time with the ball in hand, playing in just six matches and picking up five wickets. His economy rate was on the higher side of 9.6 and as a result, he was signed by the Delhi Capitals ahead of the 2018 IPL.
Handed the new ball or asked to deliver in the dying stages of the innings, this Kiwi has done it all and will be able to cruise comfortably with the wealth of experience he has under his belt.
Boult's gentle demeanor also makes him one of the most well-liked cricketers in the world, perhaps second only to his national teammate Kane Williamson.
#1 Suryakumar Yadav
India T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav, who, in a strange twist of circumstances, plays under the leadership of Hardik Pandya at MI, has earlier been a part of KKR from 2014 to 2017 for four seasons. Yadav was initially brought into the IPL by MI in 2013 but subsequently signed by KKR ahead of the 2014 season.
Although he could not play much of a role in their title-winning 2014 season with just 164 runs in 10 innings, his strike rate of 140.17 impressed the franchise enough to stick with him for a few more years. Unfortunately, his strike rate dipped to 119.31 in 2017 before MI brought him back to his hometown in 2018.
In his first season back in blue, Yadav scored 512 runs in 14 innings at an average of 36 and a strike rate of 133. In 2019, when MI won their fourth IPL title, Yadav played a significant role with 424 runs in 15 innings at an average of 32 and strike rate of 130. He has since evolved to become a vital cog in the MI wheel, crossing 600 runs in the 2023 season.