Kevin Pietersen made a bold prediction and suggested that the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will appoint their former coach as their new head coach for the next season. The former England batter made the claim following the nightmare start to the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), where they are winless after six matches in the league following their defeat to Gujarat Titans (GT) at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side has lost five of their first six games, and their only point came after a washout against table-toppers. Punjab Kings (PBKS) in a game where they made a poor start.
Ahead of the 2026 season, KKR appointed Abhishek Nayyar as their head coach, but his future is already under doubt. The former Indian cricketer has been part of KKR's backroom staff since the 2018 season, but his record as a head coach across teams is poor. Nayyar had replaced Chandrakant Pandit in the role.
Pietersen has claimed that Brendon McCullum will be KKR's head coach for the 2027 season. For those unversed, the former New Zealand cricketer was at the helm of affairs of the franchise from the start of the 2020 season till the end of the 2022 campaign. In this period, KKR reached the final of the 2021 season. McCullum also played for the Knight Riders from 2008 to 2010 and 2012 to 2013.
"Baz McCullum will be the coach of KKR next season.Bookmark this tweet," wrote Pietersen on X.
McCullum is currently the head coach of the England cricket team and is contracted till the end of the 2027 World Cup. His future had come under doubt after their 4-1 defeat in the Ashes, but the England Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed last month that he will continue in the top job after a review.
Gautam Gambhir had returned to the franchise in 2024 as a mentor, but he left the franchise after one season as he was named as India's head coach. His contract with Team India also runs till the end of 2027. He had captained KKR to their first two titles in 2012 and 2024 before being a key person behind the third trophy.
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Aayush Kataria is a Senior Copy Editor at Times Network with four years of experience, having started his career in the organisation. He is a key memb...View More
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