Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have roped in England opener Jason Roy as replacement after injured Shreyas Iyer and Shakib Al Hasan (personal reasons) were ruled out of the tournament. Roy has been signed for INR 2.8 crore for the IPL 2023 from his base price of INR 1.5 crore.

“Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of the tournament owing to a lower back injury while Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has confirmed his unavailability for the season,” IPL said in a statement.

Roy, who earlier featured in the 2017 and 2018 seasons, last played in the 2021 season for Sunrisers Hyderabad. In 2021, he played five games, scoring 150 runs including a half-century. The 32-year-old has played 64 T20Is for England, scoring 1522 runs at a strike rate of 137.61 with 8 fifties.

Talking about Shreyas Iyer, KKR’s regular skipper is likely to remain out of action for at least five months.

On Tuesday (April 4), news agency PTI reported that Iyer is set to undergo surgery abroad to treat his lower back injury issue and will also miss the World Test Championship final against Australia in June.

(iplt20.com inputs)