RR announce Keshav Maharaj as replacement for Prasidh Krishna for IPL 2024; KKR rope in Allah Ghazanfar to replace Mujeeb-ur-Rahman
The Rajasthan Royals (RR) have named South Africa left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj as a replacement for the injured pacer Prasidh Krishna for the remainder of 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL).
Maharaj recently led the Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) sister franchise Durban's Super Giants in the 2024 SA20, where they finished second in the points table. However, they lost to the eventual winners Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the final.
The spinner was part of the LSG camp in the IPL 2024 as well on an unofficial basis, using the tournament as an avenue to keep himself ready for the 2024 T20 World Cup. He recently visited Ayodhya's Ram Mandir along with some of the members of the LSG squad.
According to a statement from the official website, RR have opted to rope in Maharaj into their squad for his base price of ₹50 lakh. With the Sanju Samson-led side only having seven overseas players in their squad, they were allowed to complete their quota of eight with the latest signing.
"Prasidh Krishna recently underwent surgery on his left proximal quadriceps tendon and is currently recovering. His replacement Keshav Maharaj, a veteran South African cricketer, has played 27 T20Is, 44 ODIs and 50 Tests and has scalped 237 wickets in international cricket.
"Additionally, he has played 159 T20s, picking up 130 wickets and can chip in with some handy runs. RR have brought him on board for his base price of INR 50 Lac," the statement on iplt20.com read
It is to be noted that Prasidh Krishna is missing out on the IPL for the second season in a row. The right-arm pacer was entirely ruled out of the 2023 edition due to a stress fracture. He suffered another injury during the 2024 Ranji Trophy for Karnataka.
Acquired for a hefty sum by RR in the 2022 mega-auction, Prasidh had played a huge role in the franchise's run to the final, claiming 19 wickets for the season.
KKR name Allah Ghazanfar as replacement for Mujeeb Ur Rahman for IPL 2024
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have also been forced to name a replacement following Mujeeb ur Rahman's failure to recover from injury. The mystery spinner played in the tour of India earlier this year after having his NOCs revoked. Although the ACB reversed its decision, Mujeeb suffered an injury forcing him to miss the Sri Lanka series, and eventually miss the IPL as well.
Now with Mujeeb out of contention, KKR have named 16-year-old spinner Allah Ghazanfar as the replacement player. He was the youngest player to be registered for the IPL 2023 mini-auction, and recently made his international debut during the ODI series against Ireland.
"Allah Ghazanfar has represented Afghanistan in 2 ODIs. The youngster has played 3 T20s and 6 List A matches and has 5 and 4 wickets respectively against his name. He joins KKR for his base price of INR 20 Lac," the statement read.
Ghazanfar went wicketless across his first two ODI appearances while bowling a combined total of nine overs.