Kumar Sangakkara is expected to depart the Rajasthan Royals with the arrival of Rahul Dravid, according to a report.
The Rajasthan Royals have undergone a significant management change as a result of Rahul Dravid’s return to the team as a coach. It has been stated that the franchise’s Director of Cricket Operations, Kumar Sangakkara, is searching for a way out, with former Team India batsman Vikram Rathour, who is also apparently set to join him among the support staff. In fact, according to a report, Sangakkara has reportedly already started negotiations with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to take over as mentor. Gautam Gambhir vacated the position to take up the position of head coach of Team India.
Gambhir and assistant coach Abhishek Nayar have decided to join the Indian men’s cricket squad, meaning that KKR will have a significant turnover in support personnel. Currently, Bharat Arun is the bowling coach for the Knight Riders, while their head coach is merely Chandrakant Pandit. The Indian team now includes Ryan ten Doeschate, the fielding coach for KKR, as part of Gambhir’s support group.
Though the legendary Sri Lankan batsman has offers from several other teams, KKR is reportedly in early talks with Sangakkara about the coach post, according to a Telegraph India story. In the upcoming days, a final decision is anticipated.Throughout the past few years, Sangakkara has been a key component of Rajasthan’s dependable results. Joining the Royals in 2021, Sangakkara under Sanju Samson’s captaincy helped the team advance to the 2022 IPL final. Rajasthan defeated Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the eliminator of the 2024 Indian Premier League after finishing third in the points standings. The team was unable to advance to consecutive IPL finals, though.
Should Sangakkara opt to join KKR, a full cycle of coaching changes would be completed, with Rahul Dravid, Gautam Gambhir, and the former captain of Sri Lanka taking over from one another in various coaching configurations, linking the IPL and international cricket.
