Abhishek Nayar has completed the necessary paperwork for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach role ahead of IPL 2026, said sources aware of the development to IANS on Thursday. Nayar, who served as assistant coach of the Indian team and was part of the support staff that won the 2025 Champions Trophy, will succeed Chandrakant Pandit, with whom the two-time champions parted ways after the side failed to qualify for the 2025 IPL playoffs.
Nayar rejoined the KKR coaching staff mid-season in IPL 2025 as the assistant coach after his deal with the Indian team concluded. IANS understands that Nayar’s promotion from assistant coach to head coach at KKR is now a confirmed decision. “It is understood that the necessary paperwork has been completed. An official announcement from the franchise is expected to come in some time,” further said sources to IANS.
Nayar has extensive coaching credentials due to his long-term association with KKR in the IPL and extensive work with Indian players such as Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Shreyas Iyer. He has earned recognition in cricketing circles as someone with a keen eye for spotting emerging talent.
He has also been in charge of the KKR academy since joining the setup in 2018 and was part of the coaching staff that helped KKR win the IPL 2024 title. In the past, players like Rinku Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and Varun Chakaravarthy have credited Nayar’s influence in their development as dependable players for the franchise.
Nayar also serves as head coach of UP Warriorz (UPW) in the Women’s Premier League (WPL), a role he assumed in July 2025 following the departure of Jon Lewis. It will be interesting to see how Nayar manages being the head coach for two different teams in separate T20 franchise leagues in India.
For now, Nayar’s first task as KKR’s head coach will be to craft a strong strategy for the franchise in the mini auction, to be held in December this year ahead of the 2026 season of the ten-team competition. Before that, he will be devising strategies for UPW to perform well in the WPL mega auction, expected to be held in the last week of November.
