Bought back by Kolkata Knight Riders for a whopping Rs 23.75 crore at the IPL mega auction here, Venkatesh Iyer on Sunday said he would be "more than happy" to take on the captaincy challenge and step into Shreyas Iyer's shoes. In a bold and unexpected move, the Shah Rukh Khan-owned franchise chose not to retain their 2024 IPL-winning captain Shreyas Iyer at the mega auction here and went for an all out bidding war against Royal Challengers Bengaluru to secure Venkatesh. "I had the opportunity to captain the side in Nitish Rana's absence when he was unfortunately injured, and I was the vice-captain as well," said Venkatesh after he was bought by KKR for the huge amount. "I've always believed that captaincy is just a tag, but leadership is about creating an environment where everyone feels they can play for this team and contribute. If given the responsibility, I would be more than happy to take it on. Absolutely (I'm ready for it). "Together, we will aim to defend the championship