IPL 2024: Kolkata Knight Riders Name 16-Year-Old Afghanistan Spinner As Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s Replacement
New Delhi: Kolkata Knight Riders have named Allah Ghazanfar as a replacement for Mujeeb Ur Rahman for the ongoing IPL 2024. Ghazanfar has represented Afghanistan in two ODIs so far. The 16-year-old was a part of the Afghanistan side that played in the U-19 World Cup earlier this year in South Africa. The youngster has played 3 T20s and 6 List A matches, having taken five and four wickets respectively. He joins KKR for his base price of Rs 20 lakh.
On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals have also roped in South African Keshav Maharaj in place of injured Prasidh Krishna who was ruled out of IPL 2024. Krishna recently underwent surgery on his left proximal quadriceps tendon and is currently recovering. 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 Rs 50 lakh. Maharaj, who’s also a Super Giant in the SA20, joined Lucknow Super Giants at the start of the season to inject positive energy in the group.
The left-handed spinner feasted on Indian surfaces last year in the ODI World Cup, where he picked up 15 wickets from 10 matches at an economy of just over four. Even in the SA20 earlier this year, Maharaj, playing for our sister franchise, took 15 wickets from 13 matches and choked the opposition consistently. His leadership skills also stood out throughout the tournament.