Anil Kumble Appointed As Director Of Cricket Operations For Kings XI Punjab

Former India skipper and head coach Anil Kumble has joined Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) as the Director of Cricket Operations in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Punjab, who will be desperate to take home the trophy, have changed their support staffs in a bid to change their fortunes.

KXIP remain one of the few franchises who are yet to win the coveted IPL trophy. They reached the finals in 2014 but lost it to Kolkata Knight Riders despite a spectacular hundred from Wriddhiman Saha. In the last two seasons, they have lost track after making a good start to the competition.

Punjab alongside Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore are yet to lift the cup. Kings XI Punjab will hope that the addition of someone of Anil Kumble’s calibre changes their fortune. Kumble has been a part of Royal Challengers Bangalore previously and also worked with the Indian team as the head coach.

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Co-owner of Kings XI Punjab, Ness Wadia told to TOI that Anil Kumble is their choice as the coach for the next season. With so much experience and technical acumen, they hope Kumble to add value to the team and help them reach their goal.

“Kumble is our choice to coach Kings XI. The world knows about his cricketing and coaching abilities. He’s a very calm, cool and collected person. He comes with a lot of experience in the IPL, having worked with two other franchises in the past, and also with the Indian team. We’re pretty sure that under his leadership, Kings XI will do very well,” Wadia said.

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Meanwhile, Kings XI Punjab has finalised their support staffs after consultation with Anil Kumble. Former Australia cricketer George Bailey will join as batting coach while Sunil Joshi will don the hat of the assistant coach. As per reports, Jonty Rhodes and Courtney Walsh are likely to take up the role of the fielding and bowling coach respectively.

There has been a lot of debates over Ravichandran Ashwin’s availability in the next IPL. Reports emerged that Delhi Capitals are keen to rope in. Rumours heated up when Ashwin removed Kings XI Punjab from his Twitter bio. But Ness Wadia insisted that the off-spinner remains a key part of the set-up.

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