'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIF/8QAFAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABP/aAAwDAQACEAMQAAAAjfFl/8QAHxAAAQMFAAMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAwECBAAFERIhBjEy/9oACAEBAAE/AL1KKfzCx2iEeRFI1pDlKNydZr84VFzxFoghbu4vuv/EABYRAQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAIf/aAAgBAgEBPwBNv//EABYRAAMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABMf/aAAgBAwEBPwBQ/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Dwayne Bravo's arrival at the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as a mentor in IPL 2025 is as big a gain for his new team. Similarly, it is a loss for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the team he played for or coached for almost his entire career in the league.
After taking over as bowling coach following retirement, Bravo was a popular figure at CSK. Young pacers looked up to him and now credit him for teaching them the intricacies of bowling in T20s. Aged just 41, he could have been in line to take over as CSK's head coach in a few years, perhaps after Stephen Fleming's departure.
With a bigger influence at KKR, he can build a team in his image to kick off an era. In the meantime, Chennai would have to scramble for a replacement, though with the knowledge that not many could replicate the impact of a player who was already aligned with the team's vision and transitioned into a coach.
But, Bravo is not the first CSK player to play as a coach at KKR. Below, is a list of three other players who have had the two great teams in common:
#3 David Hussey
Former Australian international David Hussey, one of the best T20 players of his generation, joined KKR in 2019 and saw over a turbulent time in the franchise's history. KKR called him the "chief mentor" and he was around till the 2023 season.
Hussey played five matches for CSK in 2014 as his elder brother, Michael Hussey, enjoyed a bigger, more fruitful career with the franchise. Hussey featured for KKR, too, in 2008-10 but played most of his IPL career after that for the Punjab Kings (PBKS) or the Kings XI Punjab, as they were called then, till 2013.
Dinesh Karthik was the captain when Hussey joined KKR. The team was flirting with the playoff spots for a while at the time. In 2020, Karthik gave up captaincy to Eoin Morgan in the middle of the season in one of the most awkward transitions.
The team reached the final in 2021 but Morgan wasn't retained and Shreyas Iyer took over in 2022. However, the Indian batter got injured the next year and Nitish Rana had to stand in for a season -- during all these years KKR played with different identities but could never find consistency.
Hussey was one of the kinder, friendlier figures in the team. He was seen in most behind-the-scenes videos as a soft hand for the players and often came out for press conferences in difficult times. Gautam Gambhir replaced him at KKR in 2024 but he still works as a coach for Victoria and Melbourne Stars' men's teams.
#2 Lakshmipathy Balaji
Lakshmipathy Balaji is one of the rare IPL athletes to have played for and also coached two franchises. His journey has been quite similar to Bravo. Balaji played for CSK between 2008-10 (31 wickets in 29 matches) and then represented KKR from 2011 to 2013 (33 wickets in 35 matches), playing a key cog in the 2012 title win.
KKR appointed him as a bowling coach and mentor immediately after he retired from all forms of cricket in 2016. But just after serving one year in 2017, when CSK returned to the league after serving a two-year ban from the IPL, they roped in Balaji as the bowling coach from 2018 onwards.
He oversaw two league titles in 2018 and 2021 before resigning due to personal reasons. However, he has continued to work with CSK's academies away from the limelight.
#1 Brendon McCullum
Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum has become one of the most high-profile and sought-after names in the international coaching arena since taking over the job as England's men's Test head coach. Next year, he'll also take over the white-ball lineups of the national side.
KKR and CSK have been a key part of his journey. He famously kicked off the IPL in 2008 with his 158* (73) against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. He was with the franchise for five of the six years between 2008 and 2013 with a stint at the now-defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala in between.
He then played for two years at CSK and with 841 runs in 28 innings at a strike rate of 137.19, almost surpassed his tally at KKR (882 runs in 35 innings).
After he called curtains on his playing career, the Knight Riders franchise appointed him as the head coach of both the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League and KKR in 2019.
He formed a partnership with then-England captain Morgan at KKR and despite the skipper's personal underwhelming performances, KKR reached the final of IPL 2021, which they lost to CSK. More than reaching the final, it was a new fearless style of play that year that gave KKR a lot of momentum to fly to the final despite a poor start and give McCullum his identity as a coach.
England came calling in 2022 and the rest is history.
