IPL 2026 Update: Kumar Sangakkara Takes Over As Rajasthan Royals Head Coach

Rajasthan Royals has confirmed Sri Lankan legend and 2011 ICC World Cup finalist Kumar Sangakkara will be their Head Coach for IPL 2026.

Sangakkara was already acting as RR's Director of Cricket in IPL

Source : PTI

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Rajasthan Royals (RR) appears to be entering a brand new era from the next edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). 

They first traded long-term player and captain, Sanju Samson, to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), bringing Ravindra Jadeja back to the franchise (along with Sam Curran).

The 2008 IPL champions have now another major change, appointing Kumar Sangakkar as their Head Coach. 

Sangakkara Named RR Head Coach 

🚨 Official: Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara will also take charge as Head Coach for IPL 2026 pic.twitter.com/4IRWoQM3mj

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) November 17, 2025

Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara ahd been acting as Rajasthan Royals' Director of Cricket since 2021. Rahul Dravid held the position of Head Coach last season.

However, he left the spot following a disappointing finish (placed 9th out of 10 teams), and the reins of the franchise have now been handed over to Sangakkara. 

RR officially confirmed the news on X (@rajasthanroyals) via an announcement video, as well as a post.

IPL 2026: RR Retained and Released Players

Rajasthan Royals have retained much of their squad from the previous season, and will be heading into the IPL 2026 auctions, set to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 16, 2025, with a purse of Rs 16.05 crore.

Here's a detailed look at who they have kept, and who have been let go from the squad:

Retained Players:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shimron Hetmyer, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Shubham Dubey, Lhuan Dre-Pretorius, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, D Ferreira, Jofra Archer, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma, Yudhvir Singh, Kwen Maphaka, Nandre Burger

Released Players:

Kunal Singh Rathore, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Akash Madhwal, Ashok Sharma, Kumar Kartikeya

As already mentioned, Sanju Samson has been traded to CSK in exchange of Jadeja and Curran.

Middle order batsman Nitish Rana has also been traded to the Delhi Capitals, with South Africa's Donovan Ferreira being traded in from them.