Rajasthan Royals reportedly reject Kumar Sangakkara joining KKR as Gautam Gambhir replacement, despite Rahul Dravid's approval

After weeks of speculation, Rajasthan finally announced Dravid's comeback to the franchise as the head coach on Friday. He had previously been associated with the IPL team from 2011 to 2015, taking on different roles during his tenure. Dravid first joined the Royals 13 years ago and served as the team's captain in 2012 and 2013. He later transitioned into the role of mentor for the team in 2014 and 2015.

Following the announcement on social media, RR also posted a tweet with a graphic of Dravid and Sangakkara shaking hands, while the caption read: "This is going to be exciting!" and the picture also mentioned, “New eRRa.”

Moreover, a statement from RR's press release stated: “The former Royals' captain and coach spent five seasons with the franchise from 2011 to 2015, and will commence with the team immediately, working with Royals' director of cricket Kumar Sangakkara to implement the franchise's overall cricketing strategy.”

Reports have long claimed that the former Sri Lanka captain wants to part ways with Rajasthan Royals before the start of the 2025 season of the IPL. He was earlier linked to the white-ball head coach role of the England men's team before the ECB named Brendon McCullum for the role.

On Wednesday, a report in the Telegraph said that KKR is in talks with Sangakkara, who has served as the director of cricket at Rajasthan Royals since 2021. The report further said that Sangakkara is also considering offers from other franchises, with KKR to be told about the veteran cricketer's decision over the next few days.

Amid the reports, the former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batter welcome Dravid back to the franchise after nine years.

Sangakkara said, "Rahul is one of the greatest players to have played the game, but what he has achieved over the past decade as a coach is extraordinary."

"The characteristics that he possesses as a coach to nurture talent but also enable them to consistently perform at the highest level, will allow the Rajasthan Royals to further challenge for the title," he added.