IPL 2025: Rahul Dravid's Team India colleague snubs Rajasthan Royals to join rival franchise- Report

In a surprising turn of events, Paras Mhambrey, the former bowling coach of Team India under Rahul Dravid, has opted to join the Mumbai Indians (MI) franchise for the upcoming IPL 2025 season, instead of linking up with Dravid at Rajasthan Royals . This development comes as a surprise, as it was widely expected that Mhambrey would follow Dravid to Rajasthan Royals, where the former India captain recently took charge.

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Paras Mhambrey to join Mumbai Indians ?

According to a Cricbuzz report, Paras Mhambrey, who played a crucial role in guiding Indian bowlers to success across formats, will now join the five-time IPL champions, Mumbai Indians . This will be his second stint with the franchise, having previously worked with them before taking on roles with the BCCI. The 52-year-old will work alongside Lasith Malinga, who is also a bowling coach for MI.

While officials have not commented on the development, it is understood that Paras Mhambrey will be part of the MI camp for the coming IPL season. Mahela Jayawardene, the global head of performance for MI, will oversee the delegation of work among the coaching staff.

Rahul Dravid, who had expressed his desire to move on quickly after India's T20 World Cup win, had brought along Vikram Rathour, the former India batting coach, to Rajasthan Royals . Another prominent name part of Dravid's coaching staff in the Indian cricket team is T Dilip, who the BCCI has retained to work under Gautam Gambhir . 

Paras Mhambrey, on the other hand, will work for head coach Mark Boucher if he becomes part of the Mumbai Indians setup. Kieron Pollard is the batting coach for Mumbai Indians, while James Pamment is the fielding coach. Hardik Pandya was appointed the captain of the team last season, replacing Rohit Sharma . 

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The potential appointment of Paras Mhambrey comes ahead of the upcoming IPL 2025 mega auction, expected to be held in November. It will be interesting to see how the team dynamics shape up after the auction is done.