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On Monday evening, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have announced Zaheer Khan as their head coach ahead of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2027. He has a one-year contract with the possibility of extension as well. It was revealed that his appointment as the head coach was influenced by former India National Cricket Team captain MS Dhoni.
This is the first time that Zaheer has been appointed as the head coach. Previously, he has been involved in different roles with the Indian cricket team and also other IPL franchises. Recently, in March he conducted a specialized three-day red-ball fast-bowling camp at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru in March 2026. He has been working on nurturing young fast bowlers.
Zaheer Khan's coaching tenure
Zaheer Khan, ahead of joining CSK as a head coach, was first the bowling consultant of the India National Cricket Team back in 2017. He was initially discussed in a full-time coaching capacity, but ultimately took on a consulting role to assist the fast-bowling unit. Later on, he joined Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2018 and worked till 2022 as the Director of Cricket.
𝗭𝗮𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗞𝗵𝗮𝗻
— 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒃𝒂𝒔 (@Shebas_10dulkar) September 21, 2026
2017 - Team India
(Bowling Consultant)
2018 to 2022 - Mumbai Indians
(Director of Cricket)
2022 to 2024 - Mumbai Indians
(Global Head of Cricket Development)
2024 to 2025 - Lucknow Super Giants
(Team Mentor)
From Today - Chennai Super Kings
(Head… pic.twitter.com/NfT34YmhKs
Following that, he was offered a different role for two years, from 2022 to 2024, as he served as the Global Head of Cricket Development. He managed the wider global franchise ecosystem for Mumbai Indians. For one year, from 2024 to 2025, he worked with the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) as the mentor of the team following the departure of Gautam Gambhir.
Can Zaheer Khan bring back CSK's lost glory?
Zaheer can nurture the young talent, as he replaced Stephen Fleming, who was sacked by the management after 19 years. The former New Zealand captain stepped down after three consecutive poor seasons from the franchise as they failed to qualify for the playoffs and had one bottom finish for the first time in their history.
The 2011 ODI World Cup winner with India under the leadership of MS Dhoni will help the franchise work better, as the former CSK captain rates Zaheer very highly for his amazing bowling skills across formats. He termed Zak the ‘Sachin Tendulkar of bowling.’ Though Zak had a gap in his coaching resume this year, he will bring a lot of experience to guide the young fast bowlers.
Zaheer Khan's IPL record
Zaheer Khan, as a player, has played 100 IPL matches; he started his career with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (then Royal Challengers Bangalore) in 2008, that he moved to Mumbai Indians and played there for two seasons, and lost the 2010 final to CSK. He yet again joined RCB in 2011 and yet again lost the final to the Men in Yellow.
He returned to MI in 2014 and played a few games; then he was picked by Delhi Capitals (DC) (then Delhi Daredevils) and played for four seasons and also captained the franchise for two seasons in 2016 and 2017, and then retired from the game, with 102 wickets to his name in the rich cash league.
