Abhishek Nayar explained why the Kolkata Knight Riders decided to go big on the acquisition of Cameron Green during the IPL 2026 auction. KKR secured the Australian all-rounder for Rs 25.20 crores, making him the most expensive foreign player in the history of the IPL.
In T20 internationals, he has scored 521 runs in 21 matches at an average of 32.56 and a strike rate of 160.30, with six fifties and 12 wickets. In the IPL, he previously played for Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, accumulating 707 runs in 29 matches at an average of 41.58 and a strike rate above 153, including a century and two fifties, and took 16 wickets.
Nayar explained the team’s strategy with Green, saying that they wanted to go all out for him. The KKR head coach said that the all-rounder is the future of the franchise given that Andre Russell has retired from the IPL.
“I cannot say how high we were willing to go for him, but we wanted to go all out. If we have the money, we spend it. There was no point in saving the money. The goal was to do whatever we could to secure Green, as he is a key player for us. With Andre Russell gone, we need someone to take the franchise forward. So, we decided we must have Cameron Green,” said Nayar.
Discussing Green’s role, Nayar confirmed that Green will bat at the top of the order and expect a lot of runs from him.
“We see Cameron Green batting in the top three. He is a player who can score 500 runs for us. That is why we were so desperate to get him. We know he has that ability. He has scored over 500 runs in the IPL before, so he can do well in the top order. He solves different problems for us. Over the past few years, our success came when our top three players scored more than 400 runs. The hope is that he can score big runs for us,” said Nayar.
KKR acquired 13 players during the auction, spending Rs. 64.3 Crore. They also acquired Matheesha Pathirana during the auction along with Green.
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