Punjab Kings part ways with Anil Kumble, new coach for IPL 2023 to be announced: Report

The Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Punjab Kings has reportedly decided not to renew head coach Anil Kumble's contract for the upcoming season. Kumble's three-year-long stint with the Mohali-based team has ended due to the side's substandard performance during his tenure. In the three years that Kumble was in-charge of Punjab Kings, they finished fifth in both 2020 and 2021 and sixth in 2022. 

According to ESPNcricinfo, the decision has been taken by a board comprising of owners Preity Zinta, Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, Karan Paul, and the franchise's CEO Satish Menon. The report suggests that the Punjab Kings franchise is currently looking for potential candidates who can coach the side in the upcoming season. The franchise is reported to be in talks with Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss to replace Kumble for IPL 2023. 

Meanwhile, another report suggests that Punjab Kings is also looking to replace Mayank Agarwal as captain of the team. The Kings reportedly want Agarwal to focus on his batting as they feel he will be a crucial player for them with the bat. Agarwal was named the captain ahead of IPL 2022 after KL Rahul left the team to join Lucknow Super Giants. He had one of the worst IPL seasons with the bat as he scored just 196 runs in 13 matches at an average of 16.33 and with a strike rate of 122.50. 

Punjab Kings in IPL

Punjab Kings is one of the few teams in IPL history that has not won a single edition of the cash-rich tournament. The team has qualified for IPL playoffs twice  - in 2008 and 2014. The Kings finished as the semi-finalists in the inaugural season of the IPL, while they came second in the 2014 edition of the tournament. 

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