After Rahul Dravid’s departure, Kumar Sangakkara is reportedly set to take over as the new head coach of the Rajasthan Royals for the upcoming IPL season. Sangakkara has been serving as the Director of Cricket for RR since 2021 and is now expected to be appointed as the head coach, according to ESPNcricinfo.
During his tenure as head coach and Director of Cricket, Sangakkara led RR to the playoffs twice and to the IPL final in 2022, where they lost to Gujarat Titans. Rahul Dravid, who took over as head coach after leading India to the T20 World Cup victory in 2024, recently left the franchise after a review of the 2025 season.
In an official statement, RR thanked Dravid for his contributions and announced Sangakkara as his replacement. Sangakkara will face the challenge of finding a new captain as Sanju Samson has expressed his desire to leave the team. Samson, who was retained for ₹18 crore ahead of the 2025 season, was sidelined due to injury and played only nine matches as RR finished in ninth place.
Sangakkara will now have the responsibility of leading the team in the upcoming IPL season and finding a suitable replacement for Samson as captain.
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