Back Where I Belong: KKR Coach Abhishek Nayar After Kolkata Return

Former India coach Abhishek Nayar has recently returned to the Kolkata Knight Riders after leaving his position with the Indian Premier League (IPL) to join the Indian team. However, he was removed from the national men’s side due to India’s lacklustre performance in Australia. 

Now that he is back in the KKR backroom, which needed someone like him after the ouster of head coach Chandrakant Pandit, the former Mumbai legend said that he’s feeling at home after his return to the Kolkata franchise. 

“KKR is family to me. Everyone throws his weight way too much around the fact that it’s family, but for me, I think it’s family because the speed at which I came back [to the team] was a testament to the fact that that’s where I belong in a lot of ways,” Nayar said, as quoted in India Today. 

“I’ve always looked at anything as opportunity, and this is an opportunity, which I’m very, very excited for in that regard. The opportunity is to create a culture where everyone understands that this franchise plays to win trophies, and try and bring that mentality into our ecosystem.”

Nayar also recently became the only Indian head coach in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) after becoming the head coach of the UP Warriorz side. Speaking on the league and the opportunity it offers, Nayar remarked on the changes WPL has already made in Indian domestic cricket. 

“WPL will impact not only Indian cricket, but also Indian domestic cricket. It is very different from the first year in a WPL trial, where I felt many people were more touch players,” Nayar said. 

“Now you can see so much more power entering the game. You can see the girls diving around, throws are flat, throws are faster. There’s enormous growth, and that’s not going to stop.”

Picture credit: ANI