Chandrakant Pandit: The Unsung Hero Behind KKR's Third Title win

What Happened at Chepauk?

The Kolkata Knight Riders won their 3rd IPL title against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai on Sunday. Choosing bat first Sunrisers Choked under pressure and just managed to breach the 100-run mark.

Coming in to chase KKR lost their lucky charm and birthday boy Sunil Narine cheaply. However, this didn't hamper KKR at all as Venkatesh Iyer opened floodgates and his quickfire fifty ensured that it was easy sailing for KKR to claim their third IPL title.

Meanwhile, all the limelight has been on Gautam Gambhir the mentor few unsung heroes have also played an equal role in helping KKR win but their efforts got overshadowed.

One of those unsung heroes is the head coach himself, Mr. Chandrakant Pandit.

Who is Chandrakant Pandit?

Pandit hailing from Mumbai is an Indian Keeper- batter coming up through the ranks. On the Coaching front, Pandit has coached the three big giants in the Ranji Trophy namely Mumbai, Vidarbha, and Madhya Pradesh. With all three sides, he has achieved great success winning the title twice in Vidarbha and one recently with Madhya Pradesh.

After the departure of Brendon McCullum, Pandit took over the reins in the 2023 season.

A Disastrous Debut Season

KKR and Pandit both had a disastrous campaign in 2023 as the side failed to qualify for the playoffs and finished as low as the 7th spot. Not only because of performances but also key injuries to regular captain Shreyas Iyer also didn't help their chances. Post-season allegations made by a few international Cricketers also sparked a huge debate in cricketing circles. Even calling him 'militant' made things tougher for Pandit.

IPL 2024 Fresh Start

Despite all the chaos last season Pandit was retained as the head coach, KKR Started on a positive note by appointing Gautam Gambhir as a mentor a shot in the arm for KKR. Since then all the limelight has been on Gambhir in winning games as well in the losses.

Many former Cricketers believe that guys like Chandrakant Pandit, Bharat Arun, and even captain Shreyas Iyer have gone under the radar once Gambhir joined. With Chandrakant Pandit being the main coach he makes the job easy for batters from retaining a struggling Venkatesh Iyer to him playing a match-winning knock in the final takes a lot of mentorship. Gambhir joined the team this season but it was the efforts made by Pandit that KKR are reaping the rewards today.

In the end, KKR did emerge as the champions but as they say, many people who have worked tirelessly with the teams in the entire IPL season behind the scenes go unappreciated due to the presence of a popular star.