IPL 2022 | Kolkata Knight Riders rope in Bharat Arun as bowling coach

01/14/2022

KKR have roped in Bharat Arun as the bowling coach for the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and the former Indian cricketer will replace Kyle Mills with immediate effect. Arun has served as bowling coach for the Indian national team for four years before his tenure ended in 2021.

The upcoming edition of the IPL will be exciting as there will be two new teams in the competition and there will be a mega auction ahead of the season. In a new development ahead of the IPL 2022, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have roped in Bharat Arun as the bowling coach and the former Indian cricketer will replace Kyle Mills with immediate effect.

Arun has featured in two Tests and four ODIs for the Indian cricket team, and served as Team India’s bowling coach until the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2021, which ended his four years' tenure. The former Indian cricketer also worked as a bowling coach at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) and coached the India U19 World Cup side in 2012.

Reflecting on his appointment as KKR bowling coach, Arun has said that he is excited to work with the Kolkata-based franchise.

"I'm very excited and looking forward to becoming part of a highly successful franchise, such as the Knight Riders," Arun said on his appointment. "I have admired the Knight Riders franchise for not only being very successful in the IPL & around the world in T20 leagues but also for the way it is very professionally run."

KKR head coach Brendon McCullum has welcomed Arun saying that the latter's experience at the international level will be helpful for the two-time IPL champions.

"A warm welcome to B Arun to the KKR coaching staff. With a strong and successful pedigree in the international game, I'm sure Arun will complement the current staff we have and I look forward to working with him. His experience at international level and the ability to give confidence and clarity to our bowling group will be important, as we attempt to quickly align a new group of players to the values and style of play for KKR".

Venky Mysore, the CEO and MD of KKR, said that the franchise is excited to have Arun as the team's bowling coach.

"We are very excited to have someone of the calibre of Bharat Arun joining us as our bowling coach. He will bring a wealth of experience and expertise to KKR's strong support staff. We are delighted to welcome him to the Knight Riders family."

Arun was initially linked with the Ahmedabad franchise but it was speculated that the talks did not materialise.