Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Vaibhav Arora has expressed his relief and excitement at being re-signed by the franchise, eagerly anticipating the opportunity to bowl alongside Harshit Rana in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The right-arm seamer had an impressive campaign last year, playing a crucial role in KKR’s third title win.
Arora claimed 11 wickets at an average of 25.09 and was particularly effective with the new ball as an impact player. He also played a key role in the final, dismissing the dangerous Travis Head. Following the squad reshuffle at the end of the three-year cycle, Arora was not among the retained players.
Harshit Rana was the only bowler KKR chose to retain, alongside uncapped all-rounder Ramandeep Singh. Arora re-entered the auction pool, drawing interest from Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC). However, KKR secured his services with a successful bid of INR 1.8 crores.
“This is our third year together. We didn’t get a chance to play together initially but when we did, we had done well for the team. Even last year when we won the trophy, as a partnership, we worked well together from both ends.”
“When you’re bowling in partnerships, there’s a different relation you create off the field as well. This year he was retained, and I was bought in the auction. It feels like the brothers have reunited again,” Arora told the Indian Express.
“It was special to be back with KKR. I’ve been with the Knight Riders since the last four seasons and there is an emotional attachment with the franchise. It feels like my own family. So, when KKR picked me again, I was relieved to go back to the team I won the title with last year. I didn’t want to play for any other team,” he added.
“I’ve Improved My Death Bowling” – Vaibhav Arora ready to take on bigger role for KKR in IPL 2025
With KKR’s pace attack featuring Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, and Andre Russell—all adept at bowling in the death overs—Arora was primarily utilized with the new ball. Thanks to his ability to swing the ball both ways, he was entrusted with providing early breakthroughs in the powerplay.
However, ahead of the 2025 season, the pacer has been focusing on refining his variations to further develop his skills as a bowler. He elaborated:
“I did well in the powerplay in 2024, and I’ll take confidence from that. However, I have worked on my death bowling, and I want to be as effective as possible even at that stage of the game. I’ve focused on my slower ones, yorkers and other variations even in red ball cricket. I’ll try to bring that same execution to white ball cricket to try and do well at any stage of the game,” Arora said (as per the aforementioned source).
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