Former Captain Rumoured To Replace Chandrakant Pandit As Kolkata Knight Riders Head Coach For IPL 2026
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have parted ways with head coach Chandrakant Pandit and bowling coach Bharat Arun ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The decision came following their underwhelming IPL 2025, where the Ajinkya Rahane-led side failed to qualify for the playoffs, finishing eighth in the points table.
Chandrakant Pandit Decides to Explore New Opportunities
In an official statement, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) stated that Chandrakant Pandit has decided to explore new opportunities and wished him luck for the future.
“Thank you, Chandu sir. Chandrakant Pandit has decided to explore new opportunities and will not continue as Head Coach of Kolkata Knight Riders. We are thankful for his invaluable contributions – including leading KKR to the IPL Championship in 2024 and helping build a strong, resilient squad. His leadership and discipline have left a lasting impact on the team. We wish him all the very best for the future,” KKR said in an official statement. “We wish you the best for your future endeavours. Chandu Sir.”
KKR is yet to announce a replacement for Pandit.
Who Could Replace Chandrakant Pandit?
As per reports, Kolkata Knight Riders are considering appointing former KKR and England skipper Eoin Morgan as Chandrakant Pandit’s successor. But Morgan doesn’t have prior coaching experience. Notably, Morgan’s name was also circulating for England’s white-ball coach job for the Jos Buttler-led side ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024.
However, the southpaw’s record as a captain was decent if not exceptional, but as a batter, it was disastrous. Eoin Morgan batter took over the captaincy from Dinesh Karthik mid-season in IPL 2020 after the franchise’s poor run. In 2021, KKR reached the finals under Morgan’s captaincy, where MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) beat them by 27 runs.
However, the left-hand batter’s record as a specialist batter isn’t an encouraging one. He has managed just 995 runs in 27 innings at an average of 23.69 and a strike rate of 124.68 with three fifties.
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Changes in Coaching Staff Despite Recent Success
Chandrakant Pandit replaced Brendon McCullum at the helm after the latter took over England’s Test head coach job in May 2022. The 63-year-old took charge as KKR head coach from IPL 2023 and remained a part of the setup till the 2025 season. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) struggled significantly and finished in seventh place.
The franchise took some hard decisions, and it paid off. He played a pivotal role in managing the team and guiding his side to their third IPL title. However, the credit was mostly given to the mentor Gautam Gambhir and assistant coach Abhishek Nayar, who were heavily celebrated by Indian cricketers after the win.
Under Pandit, KKR won 22 of the 42 games across three seasons while losing 18, with two coming in no-result. In the 2025 season, however, KKR finished eighth, winning only five of their 14 league outings.
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