Kolkata Knight Riders name Nitish Rana IPL captain in Shreyas Iyer's absence

Rana has been appointed in an interim capacity until regular captain Shreyas Iyer returns from injury.

Iyer has been sidelined by a back injury but is expected to return during this season's IPL.

"While we are hopeful that Shreyas will recover and participate at some stage in the IPL 2023 edition, we feel fortunate that Nitish, with the captaincy experience having led his state side in white-ball cricket and the IPL experience he has had with KKR since 2018, will do a great job," read a statement from the Kolkata Knight Riders.

"We are also confident that under head coach Chandrakant Pandit and the support staff, he will get all the support needed off the field, and the highly experienced leaders in the squad will provide all support that Nitish may need on the field. We wish him the best in his new role and Shreyas a full and speedy recovery."

India have capped Rana once in ODI cricket and twice in T20I competition.

Kolkata have won the IPL twice. The Mumbai Indians are the most successful team in the history of the tournament with five titles. The Gujarat Titans are the reigning champions. The Punjab Kings, Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore have never won the IPL. This year's tournament is scheduled to start in late March. Kolkata's opening match is against Punjab on 1 April.