Stephen Fleming to Kieron Pollard - Franchise-wise list of key support staff changes, exits ahead of IPL 2027

The IPL 2027 auction is all set to be held in Goa on December 16. This year's auction will be a mini-auction. Incidentally, the IPL auction will take place on the same day as the second ODI between India and Sri Lanka in Bengaluru.

The retention deadline for all 10 IPL franchises ahead of the mini-auction has been set as November 15. Subsequently, the IPL will send across the registered pool of players to the franchises. The long list will be pruned down based on the response from the franchises.

Ahead of the IPL 2027 auction, there has been some hectic hiring and firing with regards to the support staffs of various franchises. In this feature, we take a look at some of the major developments pertaining to the same.

Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have roped in former India left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan as their new head coach. Zaheer takes over from Stephen Fleming, who performed the role for 16 years. During Fleming's tenure, CSK won five IPL titles. However, following their triumph in 2023, they have failed to make an impact. Fleming has replaced Brendon McCullum as England's Test coach.

Zaheer's contract with CSK will be a year long. He served as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) mentor for the IPL 2025 season. Zaheer was also associated with the Mumbai Indians (MI) franchise from 2018 to 2022, first as director of cricket operations and later as global head of development.

Meanwhile, former South African all-rounder Albie Morkel and former England spinner Gareth Batty have joined CSK as assistant coaches ahead of IPL 2027. Former India pacer Mohit Sharma has also been hired by CSK as the bowling coach.

CSK's support staff for IPL 2027 wears a relatively fresh look. Apart from Fleming, batting coach Mike Hussey, bowling coach Eric Simons, strength and conditioning coach Greg King, and physiotherapist Tommy Simsek have also ended their long association with CSK ahead of IPL 2027. Assistant coach Sridharan Sriram and fielding coach James Foster, however, retain their respective positions.

Mumbai Indians

MI have elevated Kieron Pollard as their head coach ahead of the IPL 2027 season. The former West Indies captain had earlier served as the batting coach of the Mumbai franchise in the IPL. As a player, Pollard was part of all of MI's five triumphs in the IPL - 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020.

Pollard takes over as MI's head coach from Mahela Jayawardene, who parted ways with the franchise earlier this month. Jayawardene was MI's head coach for the last two seasons. He had earlier held the same position from 2017 to 2022. During his first stint as head coach, MI won three IPL titles.

Delhi Capitals

Delhi Capitals (DC) have named former India captain Sourav Ganguly as their new head coach. Ganguly was appointed JSW's (DC co-owner) director of cricket in 2024. He also served as DC's mentor in IPL 2019 before taking over as BCCI president. In SA20 2025, Ganguly was the head coach of the Pretoria Capitals.

A few days after Ganguly's appointment, DC unveiled Yuvraj Singh as the franchise's assistant and batting coach for the IPL 2027 season. Further, Sri Lanka's pace bowling legend Chaminda Vaas has been appointed as the franchise's fast bowling coach. Also, former India leg-spinner Amit Mishra has joined DC as their spin bowling coach.

Punjab Kings

James Hopes and Brad Haddin have quit as Punjab Kings' (PBKS) fast-bowling coach and fielding coach respectively, ahead of IPL 2027. The exits came after Hopes was named head coach of Queensland and Brisbane Heat, while Haddin took charge as New South Wales head coach.

Also, Sairaj Bahutule, who served as PBKS' spin-bowling coach for IPL 2026, has taken over the same role with senior India's men's cricket team.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Ryan ten Doeschate returned to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) fold after his exit as Team India's assistant coach. In July this year, he was appointed head of cricket strategy at the Knight Riders Group. Apart from KKR in the IPL, the group also owns Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) in the CPL, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (ADKR) in the ILT20 and Los Angeles Knight Riders (LAKR) in MLC.

Ten Doeschate was part of KKR's title-winning squads in 2012 and 2014. He served in the franchise's coaching staff from 2022 to 2024 before joining Gautam Gambhir as part of Team India's coaching setup.

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