“It feels like the brothers have reunited again” - KKR player makes huge statement ahead of IPL 2025
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Vaibhav Arora has expressed his relief at being bought back by the franchise, and looks forward to bowling with Harshit Rana in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The right-arm bowler enjoyed a prolific season last year, playing a key role in the team's third title.
Arora picked up 11 wickets at an average of 25.09, and was instrumental with the new ball while coming on as an impact player. He accounted for the crucial wicket of Travis Head in the final too.
Amid the reshuffle at the end of the three-year cycle, Arora could not find a place among the retained player list. Harshit Rana was the sole bowler not released by KKR, becoming one of the two uncapped retentions along with Ramandeep Singh.
Arora returned to the auction pool, and attracted bids from the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and the Delhi Capitals (DC), but it was the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) who made the winning bid of INR 1.8 crores.
“This is our third year together. We didn’t get a chance to play together initially but when we did, we had done well for the team. Even last year when we won the trophy, as a partnership, we worked well together from both ends. When you’re bowling in partnerships, there’s a different relation you create off the field as well. This year he was retained, and I was bought in the auction. It feels like the brothers have reunited again,” Arora told the Indian Express.
“It was special to be back with KKR. I’ve been with the Knight Riders since the last four seasons and there is an emotional attachment with the franchise. It feels like my own family. So, when KKR picked me again, I was relieved to go back to the team I won the title with last year. I didn’t want to play for any other team,” he added.
Vaibhav Arora has been active in the domestic circuit for Himachal Pradesh during the IPL off season. The pacer picked up 13 wickets in just six matches at an average of 20.76 in the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy.
"I have worked on my death bowling" - Vaibhav Arora open to taking more responsibility for KKR in IPL 2025
With KKR's pace unit boasting the likes of Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, and Andre Russell, all of whom are well capable of bowling at the back end of the innings, Arora was confined to a role with the new ball. Given his ability to swing the ball both ways, he was tasked with delivering the early breakthroughs in the powerplay.
The pacer, however, admits to working on his variations to evolve as a bowler ahead of the 2025 season.
“I did well in the powerplay in 2024, and I’ll take confidence from that. However, I have worked on my death bowling, and I want to be as effective as possible even at that stage of the game. I’ve focused on my slower ones, yorkers and other variations even in red ball cricket. I’ll try to bring that same execution to white ball cricket to try and do well at any stage of the game," Arora said (as per the aforementioned source).
KKR released Mitchell Starc ahead of the auction, but have beefed up their seam bowling unit with bonafide speedsters like Anrich Nortje, Umran Malik, and Spencer Johnson.