Rachin Ravindra Leaves KKR for NZ England Test Prep

Kolkata Knight Riders confirmed on Friday that New Zealand allrounder Rachin Ravindra has departed the Indian Premier League squad to prepare for his country's upcoming Test tour of England.

The 25-year-old left ahead of Kolkata Knight Riders' home match against Gujarat Titans at Eden Gardens on Saturday. Acquired by the franchise at his base price of 2 crore rupees during the IPL 2026 auction, Ravindra did not feature in a single game this season. Team management favored Australian allrounder Cameron Green for the overseas middle-order role amid a strong Indian batting lineup.

In a social media post, Kolkata Knight Riders stated, "Rachin Ravindra has returned home to begin his redball preparations for New Zealand's upcoming Test tour to England." The announcement included a video of Ravindra bidding farewell to teammates, captioned, "Best wishes from the Knights as Rachin heads home to prepare for national duty."

Ravindra, a left-handed batter and key middle-order figure for New Zealand, enters the tour in strong red-ball form. He scored an unbeaten 165 against Zimbabwe in August 2025 and produced 176 in Christchurch, followed by unbeaten 72 and 46 in Mount Maunganui, during a...