New Zealand top-order batter Finn Allen, who was roped in by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) Auction, is looking in blazing form in the ongoing Big Bash League (BBL 2025-26). Acquired for INR 2 crores by the three-time IPL winners, Allen entered the recordbooks for slamming the most sixes in a single BBL season.
Playing for Perth Scorchers, Finn Allen went past Mitchell Owen’s record of 36 sixes he hit in 2024-25, to take his tally to 37 in the BBL 2025-26 during the Qualifier against Sydney Sixers. The 26-year-old is also currently the top-scorer in the Big Bash League 2025 season, with 479 runs in 11 games.
Given his tremendous form, Allen made a strong case for him in the KKR Playing XI for IPL 2026 and the Kolkata outfit will be extremely happy with their new signing.
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KKR needed to sign top-order wicketkeeper-batters at the IPL 2026 auction after they let go of Quinton de Kock and Rahmanullah Gurbaz on retention deadline day. They managed to buy Kiwi stars Finn Allen and Tim Seifert in the role alongside a domestic talent in Tejasvi Singh Dahiya.
Given the ideal combination, Tim Seifert has the edge over Allen to open the batting alongside Ajinkya Rahane given that he is a full-time keeper as opposed to Allen. However, Finn Allen’s recent exploits with the bat will now make the KKR selectors think of a combination where they can slot him.
The conundrum lies that if Seifert and Allen both play, KKR will have to compromise on their other overseas players since they have Cameron Green, Sunil Narine and Matheesha Pathirana – all first-choice picks in the KKR Playing XI.
Or else, the other option for KKR will be to play Finn Allen as a sole batter and give Tejasvi Dahiya a chance in the middle.
KKR can make a more informed decision once the T20 World Cup 2026 gets over and it remains to be seen which combination they opt for once the IPL 2026 season begins.
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