“I will only put pressure on myself that way” - Former KKR captain’s massive statement on India comeback after DPL 2025

Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Nitish Rana expressed his desire to make a comeback in the Indian team post the Delhi Premier League (DPL) 2025. Rana captained the West Delhi Lions and led them to the title as they beat Central Delhi Kings by six wickets in the final.

In an interview post the final, Nitish Rana was asked about performances in the local leagues affecting decisions taken by franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He is currently with the Rajasthan Royals (RR). However, the West Delhi Lions skipper reckoned that thinking about things not in his control would only add more pressure.

"There are a lot of things to think of like this. As a player I want to make an India come back too. I will only put pressure on myself that way. I did not think of anything and only looked to do what was in my control. I can bat, field, and bowl and I tried to do that. I did not think of the news outside, and I genuinely don't know what is going on. It would help me if you told me what is going on," he said. (9:34) (via Sports Now)

Nitish Rana made his international debut for India in 2021. The left-hander has played just a single ODI and two T20Is during the Sri Lanka tour the same year. He has been out of the Indian team ever since.

Talking about DPL 2025, Rana believed that he had nothing to prove to anyone. However, he stated that he wanted to prove it to himself as he had never won a trophy as a captain before.

"What is there to prove? The almighty is there to give everything. Who am I to prove anything to anyone? But yes, as a captain, this is my first trophy. I have captained a lot but had never won a trophy. So I had that within me to do it for myself because I knew that I have that ability. I won't say my decision-making is better, but I do have that game sense because I have played a lot of cricket. I wanted to prove it to myself that way rather than to anyone else," he reflected. (11:14)

The left-hander led from the front and smashed an unbeaten 79 off 49 balls in the final as the West Delhi Lions successfully chased down a 174-run target.

---

India batter credits team management and opens up on his role as captain in DPL 2025

Nitish Rana also lauded the West Delhi Lions team management for putting up a solid side during the auction. While he admitted that he did not know a lot of players in the team, he had the belief that they could win the trophy.

"I have never watched an IPL auction till date but I watched the DPL auction. The credit for making the team goes to the management because I was somewhere else for two years and did not know most of the guys. There were many juniors with whom I have not played and had not played a lot for Delhi as well in the last two years. But I felt from the first day that we could win," he said. (12:13)

The India batter also reckoned that getting to know his players to get the best out of them was important as a captain. Luckily for Rana, he was able to get his team to perform and deliver throughout the tournament.

"When you have that belief in your game, I won't say that one can win the trophy alone, but I knew how to get my players to perform. That clicked and I would have said this even if we hadn't won. I cannot expect the other player to just do what I say, it is important as a captain to know them as well," he added.

The left-hander had an impressive DPL 2025 himself. He scored 393 runs from 11 innings at an average of 65.50 and a strike-rate of 181.94, ending as the fourth-highest run-getter in the tournament.