IPL 2023: 'Chandu sir's theories match with us' - Nitish Rana on KKR having Chandrakant Pandit as head coach

IPL 2023: On Saturday, Kolkata Knight Riders plays its opening contest against Punjab Kings in Mohali. Ahead of the fixture, stand-in KKR skipper Nitish Rana praised Chandrakant Pandit's coaching abilities.

On Friday, stand-in former tow-time champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Nitish Rana said he is excited to see the impact of Chandrakant Pandit on the team because of his solid knowledge of Indian domestic cricket. Pandit, the most celebrated coach in the Indian domestic circuit, replaced Brendon McCullum as head coach ahead of this season.

Pandit had guided Madhya Pradesh to its maiden Ranji Trophy title last year, having won the national championship multiple times with Mumbai and Vidarbha. "I am very excited for the season. Whatever Chandu sir's theories are related to cricket, they match with us as people who have played domestic cricket (uncapped domestic Indians]," Rana said ahead of KKR's opener.

As always, Pandit's main emphasis is on discipline. "All our overseas players enjoy the small things Chandu sir reminds us to do. Like discipline is a big thing, timing. But, we will see the role he'll play this season and how effective he is at the end of the season," added Rana.

Rana will lead KKR without regular skipper Shreyas Iyer, who will likely be out of action for the entire league due to a recurring lower back injury, which could require surgery. KKR will open its campaign against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium in Mohli on Saturday. "It's the first game. A lot of the things that we have planned can go against us or in our favour. I feel its marathon of 14 matches is not less. The process is always important," Rana concluded.

(With inputs from PTI)