IPL 2023: Jason Roy joins Kolkata Knight Riders after Shreyas Iyer ruled out

IPL 2023: On Wednesday, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) recruited England opener Jason Roy to strengthen their team following regular captain Shreyas Iyer’s injury and the withdrawal of Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan. This strategic move is expected to provide a much-needed boost to the KKR side.

On Wednesday, KKR announced that they have signed England’s Jason Roy for Rs. 2.8 crore, which is higher than his base price of Rs. 1.5 crore, for the upcoming TATA IPL 2023 tournament.

The Kolkata Knight Riders, who have won the IPL championship twice, received a major setback when Shreyas Iyer was ruled out for the entire season due to a back injury. Additionally, Shakib Al Hasan withdrew from the tournament citing personal and national commitments.

Although Jason Roy will not be playing in KKR’s home game against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Thursday, he will be eligible for selection in the team’s next match against the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on April 9.

Jason Roy, who made his IPL debut in the 2017 season for Gujarat Lions, was last seen playing in the IPL 2021 for Sunrisers Hyderabad.

During the 2021 season, Jason Roy played in five games and scored 150 runs, which included a half-century. The 32-year-old cricketer has represented England in 64 T20I matches, accumulating 1,522 runs at an impressive strike rate of 137.61, with eight fifties.

It is highly probable that Jason Roy will take the place of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, the wicketkeeper-batsman from Afghanistan, who opened in KKR’s match against Punjab Kings and scored 22 runs off 16 balls. The Kolkata Knight Riders have N Jagadeesan in their team to fulfill the role of the wicketkeeper.