“It was a tough changing room,” ex-KKR player reveals foreign players were frustrated with legendary coach’s ‘MILITANT’ coaching style

Chandrakant Pandit is a reputed coach in the Indian domestic circuit, but has struck the nerves of his overseas players in KKR.

“It was a tough changing room,” ex-KKR player reveals foreign players were frustrated with legendary coach’s ‘MILITANT’ coaching style

Chandrakant Pandit has been coaching KKR since 2023 (Image via IPL)

Chandrakant Pandit is one of the best coaches to work in the Indian domestic circuit. In a coaching career spanning over 20 years, he led Mumbai, Vidarbha and Madhya Pradesh to Ranji Trophy success. He was also the Director of Cricket for Rajasthan during their Ranji Trophy triumph in 2012. 

With all this success, Chandrakant Pandit was approached by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2022 after Brendon McCullum left to join England. In his first season with KKR, the team massively underperformed, finishing 7th. 

YouTube video

David Wiese, who was a part of the squad in 2023, revealed that Pandit caused unrest in the dressing room. In the podcast “Hitman for Hire,” Wiese revealed that Pandit’s style of coaching left many foreign players unhappy. 

There were certain issues going on behind the scenes in the team. Guys weren’t happy with certain things that were going on, and a lot of the times, it was a tough changing room. There was a new coach coming in and he liked to do things a certain way, and that didn’t sit well with the players.
David Wiese on the Hitman for Hire podcast

He further added that many overseas players were not comfortable with Pandit’s “militant” style of coaching. He said many players, who have played around the world, were not happy with the way Pandit was managing them. 

AB de Villiers compares Chandrakant Pandit to Jurgen Klopp 

Weeks before the start of the 2024 IPL, IPL legend AB de Villiers did a run down of all IPL teams. When he came to the Kolkata Knight Riders, he called Chandrakant Pandit the Jurgen Klopp of Indian cricket as they both showed their emotions on their sleeves. 

Chandrakant Pandit and Jurgen Klopp
Chandrakant Pandit was compared to Jurgen Klopp by AB de Villiers (Images via Liverpool and ESPN)
I have really enjoyed what I have seen with him. He's a really confident guy. He looks like one of the team players, like he's part of the team. Sometimes coaches are a bit more withdrawn from the side. With a bit more of an aura and a presence, this guy feels the match. 
AB de Villiers on YouTube

In the 2024 IPL, KKR has played one match so far and won it. They now face Royal Challengers Bengaluru on 29th March at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. 

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