"I believe I can get 600 runs in this tournament and I will be aiming for that" - KKR's Nitish Rana on his goals for IPL 2024 

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Nitish Rana feels that he can breach the 600-run mark in the upcoming 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season while downplaying his ambitions to make it to Team India's squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Rana will return to his original role as a batter in the middle order after being appointed as skipper in IPL 2023 due to Shreyas' injury. He had his best-ever IPL campaign, scoring 413 runs at a strike rate of 140.96, after being stuck in the 300-run mark for six straight seasons.

With Shreyas back to strengthen the middle order and Rinku Singh playing in the form of his life, Rana would hope to improve on his displays from last season and be among the runs consistently for the franchise. The player did not have the best of Vijay Hazare Trophy campaigns after his controversial switch from Delhi to Uttar Pradesh but did have his moments in the recently concluded Ranji Trophy.

The last KKR batter to have breached the 600-run mark in a single IPL season was Robin Uthappa in his fabled 2014 campaign which led to the franchise winning their second title.

"Everyone wants to play for the country and many players will have it in the back of their mind, but we have to stay in the present. I too want to get selected for the World T20 squad, but at this moment I am thinking only about the IPL. I believe I can get 600 runs in this tournament and I will be aiming for that," Rana said in an interview with the Times of India when asked about his T20 World Cup and IPL aspirations.

Rana also spoke about KKR's high-profile acquisition of Mitchell Starc at the IPL 2024 mini-auction. The franchise shelled out ₹24.75 crore for the left-arm seamer's services, which is now the most expensive signing in the competition's history.

"Starc is too experienced to let the price tag affect him. We had been missing a death bowler and he has filled up that spot. He knows what needs to be done. In fact, I feel he will be one of our main performers this time. Of course, in T20 cricket, every bowler goes into a match knowing that he might go for runs, and Starc is prepared," Rana said.

"Starc won’t have much support as KKR’s other pacers are quite inexperienced. We have three spinners and want them to control the game. That doesn’t mean we have not paid attention to the pace department," Rana added.

Starc will be featuring in the IPL for the first time since the 2015 edition. The Australian pacer had represented Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) back then. Even though he was acquired by KKR for the 2018 season, he did not feature due to injury.

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"If a situation arises where I have to wear the captain’s band again, I am ready for it" - Nitish Rana

Although KKR failed to qualify for the playoffs in the 2023 season, Nitish Rana was praised for making the most of the resources and leading the franchise well in Shreyas Iyer's absence.

Although Shreyas returns to action, he is still firmly in the injury cloud. He reportedly complained of his back flaring up once again while playing for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy, and if reports are to be believed, he even visited a specialist to seek a resolution to the issue.

Should an instance arise where Iyer is not fully fit, the franchise are likely to turn to Rana for the leadership role, and it is one that the player is quite keen to take on.

"Shreyas is back with the team and is quite fit. Of course, he had fitness issues in the past and we cannot take anything for granted. I hope I do not have to take up this responsibility again, as we are hoping Shreyas leads in all the matches. Having said that, if a situation arises where I have to wear the captain’s band again, I am ready for it. I was made the captain last year and that was the biggest thing for me. Although we did not achieve everything we wanted, yet it was the greatest experience for me," Rana said.

KKR will kickstart their 2024 IPL campaign with a clash against the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Saturday, March 23.