Gautam Gambhir, who led the Kolkata Knight Riders to two title wins, has joined the franchise as mentor, joining head coach Chandrakant Pandit as part of the support staff."I am not an emotional person and not many things move me. But this is different," Gambhir said in a statement. "This is back to where it all started. Today, there is a lump in my throat and fire in my heart as I think about slipping into that purple and gold jersey once again."Gambhir, a T20 (2007) and ODI (2011) World Cup champion, joined Knight Riders in 2011 and was with the team till 2017. During the period, Knight Riders qualified for the IPL playoffs five times (including the two years they won the tournament) and also reached the final of the now-defunct Champions League T20 in 2014. "Gautam has always been part of the family and this is our captain coming back home in a different avatar as a 'Mentor'," team co-owner Shah Rukh Khan noted. "He was sorely missed and now we all look forward to Chandu [Chandrakant Pandit] Sir and Gautam in instilling the never-say-die spirit and of sportsmanship they stand for, in creating magic with Team KKR."
The Knight Riders support staff is led by head coach Chandrakant Pandit, with Abhishek Nayar (assistant coach), James Foster (assistant coach), Bharat Arun (bowling coach) and Ryan ten Doeschate (fielding coach) in the line-up. Gambhir was a part of Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL. He joined Lucknow Super Giants, one of two new teams in the 2022 season of the IPL, and was subsequently elevated to the role of "global mentor", which made him a part of Durban's Super Giants in the SA20 league in South Africa as well. Lucknow who has been part of two playoffs under Gambhir's mentorship recently appointed Justin Langer as their head coach. Langer will have his task cut out in steering the KL Rahul-led side from next season. This will be the decorated Australia cricketers' first assignment with an IPL franchise. He comes with an impressive CV. Under his guidance, Australia won the T20 World Cup in 2021 and he was pivotal in giving a new direction to Australian cricket after it was rocked with the Sandpapergate in 2018. Andy Flower, who collaborated closely with Gambhir, had a successful tenure with the team, finishing in the playoffs in both of their previous seasons. Super Giants placed third in their inaugural IPL season in 2022, and in IPL 2023, they were eliminated in the Eliminator.
