IPL 2026: Faf Du Plessis, Akash Chopra Highlight Leadership Vacuum in KKR Camp

After a disappointing last edition, Kolkata Knight Riders will be vying to make a comeback under the leadership of Ajinkya Rahane and new head coach Abhishek Nayar.

Though Nayar has been associated with the KKR for a long time now, this will be a new challenge for him as he'll be the mainstay of the support staff, and the void created from Gambhir's absence hasn't been easy for KKR to fill, as seen in the last edition. Therefore, as KKR enters IPL 2026, Abhishek Nayar's work will have him cut out for him to get his side back on track.

Gautam Gambhir has been an enigmatic figure in the KKR camp, first as a player and captain and then as a mentor.

Former South African skipper Faf du Plessis revealed that he always saw Gambhir as a villain, while playing against him but at the same time also respected the standards he'd set for himself and the heart on his sleeve approach he carried, whenever to he took the field.

While speaking to Jio Hotstar, Faf du Plessis shared his experience of playing against Gambhir and his impression of him as a leader:

My perspective of Gambhir is obviously very different from the guys who play with him. He’s always the villain in the story when it comes to playing against him, but you respect that. And I think that’s the key thing with Gautam Gambhir, he’s so competitive. He does not worry for one second about being liked by anyone. His job as a leader is to set high standards and have accountability within the dressing room.

He also praised Gautam Gambhir's credentials as a coach and admitted that under his mentorship, KRR were a strong team

Faf du Plessis said, "That’s what good leaders do, and he’s created that since the day he started playing. If you look at his record, you have to take your hat off and say, from a leadership perspective, KKR with him was a stronger team.”

Faf Emphasise On The Role Of A Strong Management

Faf stressed the fact that if you don't have a strong captain, then the role of the management becomes critical as they step in to take the onus. He also gave some examples of strong captain-coach duos, who complemented each other well, which translated on the field.

"People always think of the Captain when they look at leadership within an organisation or team. Yes, the Captain plays a role, but for me, it runs down from the top. So, it's your owners, Coach, and the leadership group within the team. When you look at successful teams like MI, CSK, and KKR, there’s a Gautam with a Shreyas Iyer, or a Dhoni with a Fleming. Even last year with RCB, you had really strong leadership at the top with Andy Flower and Mo Bobat, but with a very inexperienced Captain, for whom it was the first time captaining in the IPL. If you have a strong Captain, then a lot falls on him because he drives the team. But if you don’t have a strong captain, that’s when a strong Coach steps in. And I suppose that’s where Gambhir was so effective,” Faf said in the interview.

Akash Chopra Highlights KKR's Leadership Dearth

Former Indian opener Akash Chopra acknowledged the importance of having a strong core and KKR have managed to keep that but continuity in leadership is something, which is missing for them.

“It’s about the collection of players and the leader you pick, but more importantly, having continuity. It can’t just be one season here and there, because that doesn’t allow an identity to be built. You need clarity on who you’re building the team around and a clear philosophy. With KKR, they’ve shown they value a core group and go the extra yard to retain a similar core, the couple of West Indians are a good example of that investment. But they’ve lacked a consistent leader.

Chopra also gave the example of the duo of Gautam Gambhir and Shreyas Iyer, that how in their presence the most of the decisions revolved around them which led to continuity and clarity in the unit.

When Gautam was there, he had a free hand to build the team and play the brand of cricket he believed in. Even as a mentor, he wanted that same freedom, in terms of the pitches they played on and the kind of team he wanted. But he knew what he was doing and committed completely to it. The issue is, in his absence, there hasn’t been that continuity. They won with Shreyas Iyer and then let him go. Now they’re back to figuring out who the next Captain should be,” Chopra concluded.