Three-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have been instructed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to release Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman. The board’s secretary Devajit Saikia has said that it will allow KKR to pick a replacement player if they need.
“Due to the recent developments that are going on all across, BCCI has instructed the franchise KKR to release one of their players, Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh, from their squad,” Saikia told the news agency ANI. “BCCI has also said that if they ask for any replacement, BCCI is going to allow that replacement.”
Mustafizur had been bought by KKR in the IPL 2026 auction which took place on December 16. He was one of seven Bangladeshi players in the auction pool but the only one to find bidders. Mustafizur entered with a base price of Rs 2 crore but ended up Rs 9.20 crore. It was the Delhi Capitals that opened the bidding for the 30-year-old, and Chennai Super Kings challenged, with Mustafizur having turned out for both sides in the past. KKR entered the fray at Rs 5.4 crore and then managed to keep CSK at bay.
However, KKR and their co-owner, Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, have since come under intense criticism on social media and by politicians for signing the Mustafizur, linking it to reports of attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh in recent weeks.
To be updated…
