Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Chandrakant Pandit has revealed how and why KKR let go of Shreyas Iyer ahead of IPL 2025.
After a strong run in domestic cricket, Pandit was appointed the head coach of KKR in 2023 after Brendon McCullum’s exit in 2022, as he was later appointed the head coach of the England cricket team.
In 2024, head coach Pandit, captain Iyer and custodian Gautam Gambhir created a brilliant engine room that delivered an IPL title for the men in purple after a gap of 10 years.
However, after this win, things started to unravel for KKR. Gambhir became the head coach of the Indian national team and Iyer unceremoniously decided to exit KKR.
At the time, Shreyas Iyer had said that he did not get recognition for his efforts in leading KKR to the IPL title. He eventually joined Punjab Kings in IPL 2025 for Rs 26.75 crore.
Chandrakant Pandit spoke to RevSportz about Shreyas Iyer’s exit from KKR.
“Sometimes circumstances force you to leave such a player” – Chandrakant Pandit
When asked whether KKR made a mistake by not retaining Iyer, Pandit said that whatever happened was unfortunate.
“Unfortunately, we missed him. Shreyas is an amazing player who has led KKR to trophies as captain and the way he has handled the team. But sometimes, certain circumstances force you to leave such players. Because there are bigger strategies. Obviously, as a coach, when I was at KKR, I felt bad about it. Because it was not an objective thing, but it didn’t work for us. I mean, it’s just Shreyas no but i think [Phil] When we talk about Salt or other players,” he said.
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KKR struggling after dismissal of Shreyas Iyer
After Shreyas Iyer left KKR and joined PBKS in 2025, the fortunes of both the teams have taken a complete 180.
KKR appointed Ajinkya Rahane as its captain in IPL 2025, but he could not recreate the magic of last year. With Pandit as their captain and coach, KKR finished eighth in IPL 2025. After this, Pandit parted ways with KKR, but Rahane remained at the helm.
KKR appointed Abhishek Nair as head coach for IPL 2026, but he was not able to improve things. In IPL 2026, KKR is currently at the last position in the points table with just 1 win from 7 matches.
Iyer got success in Punjab Kings
Iyer was appointed captain of Punjab Kings and turned the fortunes of the team around. Under his leadership, along with head coach Ricky Ponting, PBKS made the playoffs for the first time after 11 years. Iyer led Punjab to the final, where they lost to RCB.
This was the second collaboration between Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting as captain-coaches. Both were part of Delhi Capitals in 2019 and 2020. DC finished third and second respectively in those two years.
The Iyer-Ponting duo has continued Punjab’s momentum in IPL 2026. With 5 wins in 6 matches and no result in 1, PBKS are on top of the points table this year.
“Shreyas Iyer is focused on comeback” – Pandit
Chandrakant Pandit also spoke on Shreyas Iyer’s prolonged absence and possible return to India’s T20 team. Iyer has not played any T20 International match for India since December 2023.
He was included in the squad for the T20 series against New Zealand ahead of the T20 World Cup this year, but did not get any matches and also missed the showpiece event.
Pandit said that currently there is huge competition to join the Indian team in any format and sometimes good players are left out.
“When building a team, there is always a challenge to balance experience with the need to groom new talent. The depth of talent available makes it difficult to provide every eligible player an opportunity. There is always competition, and often, equally capable replacements are available.”
He also said that Iyer is doing a good job leading PBKS this year. Pandit finally concluded by saying that Shreyas Iyer understands what he needs to do to be able to make a comeback into the Indian team, and he is following the same mindset.
“Missing the World Cup is disappointing, but such decisions come with the responsibility of the selection committee, and it is not something that can only be criticized. In the past, we have seen similar cases. These situations are part of the game, and Shreyas understands it very well.”