In major developments likely to happen in the coaching staffs of two franchises ahead of the IPL 2025 mega-auction, former India head coach Rahul Dravid is likely to replace Kumar Sangakkara as Rajasthan Royals’ coach as the Sri Lankan is in line to be the new England white-ball coach, and Ashish Nehra is set to be removed as the Gujarat Titans’ coach despite his success.
Already one of the most renowned and reputed figures in Indian cricket, Dravid’s stocks rose further after he propelled India to T20 World Cup 2024 glory in June in Barbados. Last year, he coached the side to the finals of the World Cup and the World Test Championship, both of which India lost to Australia.
Dravid is likely to return to Rajasthan Royals ahead of the IPL 2025 mega-auction, taking over the role from Kumar Sangakkara, who has been serving as RR’s coach and director of cricket since 2021.
It has been learned that Sangakkara is a strong favorite to become the new head coach of England’s limited-over team, a position that was vacated a few weeks ago after Matthew Mott resigned following England’s failures to defend both their ICC titles in the last two ICC competitions.
Sangakkara is learned to have a good relationship with Rob Key, England men’s managing director, and England white-ball captain Jos Buttler, who has also been at RR with the Sri Lankan.
Recently, Sangakkara termed the job an “exciting prospect for anyone.”
He said,
“Well, I know my name has been mentioned for some reason, but there has not been any approach as such. I think the England white-ball job is an exciting prospect for anyone, but there are so many good candidates out there.”
Dravid has previously been associated with Rajasthan, first as a player and then in the coaching role before he took over the National Cricket Academy and coached the India under-19 and A teams.
Ashish Nehra and Gary Kirsten to part ways with GT
In a surprising move, the Gujarat Titans have decided to sack coach Ashish Nehra despite his success. Nehra coached GT to their maiden IPL trophy in their debut season in 2022, and then the side finished as runners-up in 2023.
After Hardik Pandya was traded to Mumbai Indians ahead of the IPL 2024, GT appointed Shubman Gill as the captain, but the team failed to reach the playoffs.
But the reason, as it has been learned through a report in Cricbuzz, that Nehra is facing the axe is that the owners are not happy with him.
Cricbuzz stated,
“It is said that Nehra may have unsettled some individuals. The former India pacer was a visible presence in the past seasons, including the 2023 final, when he was seen advising Mohit Sharma after every delivery. But he wasn’t as frequently spotted by the television cameras in the 2024 season, and this might not be coincidental.”
GT’s mentor and batting coach, Gary Kirsten, is already on his way out, having taken up the head coach role of the Pakistan cricket team. Vikram Solanki, GT’s director of cricket, is also under the scanner, but he might just manage to hold on to his job.
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