KKR CEO admits retiring Russell was SRK’s decision, appointing him as power coach was ‘spur of the moment thought’

NEW DELHI: CEO of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Venky Mysore, has admitted that releasing the franchise’s star all-rounder Andre Russell was the decision of the team’s owner and superstar Shah Rukh Khan and appointing him as the team’s “power coach” was a “spur of the moment” thought.

Russell announced his retirement from the Indian Premier League (IPL) on November 30. The all-rounder confirmed that he will join KKR’s support staff as the franchise’s new “Power Coach” for the 2026 season. Russell added that he will continue playing in T20 leagues around the world and will remain part of the other Knight Riders teams globally.

During his IPL career, Russell played 140 games, scoring 2,651 runs, including 12 fifties and taking 123 wickets, with one five-wicket haul. He made his IPL debut in 2012 for Delhi Daredevils (now Capitals) before joining KKR in the 2014 auction. He won two titles (2014 and 2024) for the Purple and Gold. Russell also won the IPL MVP award twice during this run, in 2015 and 2019. (ANI)

Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, Mysore spoke about the decision to release Russell, who was retained at Rs 12 crore ahead of the last Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The CEO said that the team management was “grappling with all combinations, ideas” and releasing Russell got them Rs 18 crore in their purse. Russell, though he cost KKR Rs 12 crore, releasing him gave the franchise Rs 18 crores, since he was the ‘Player 1’ in the list of KKR’s retainees last year, worth Rs 18 crore, and that amount got credited to the team’s purse ahead of the auction on December 16.

“I wish there was no auction every year because this just becomes very nerve-wracking many times, and some things that you don’t want to do, you end up having to do. But no, it wasn’t like a last, last-minute thing, but we were grappling with all combinations, ideas, what to do and all that. Finally, we said, okay, this release is what we have to do,” said Mysore.

“But some people missed the fundamental point, which is the [purse] deduction for us was 18 crore, not 12 crore by releasing Dre. So, although his contract value was 12 crore, the deduction from our purse was 18 crore in 2025. A lot of people missed that and said, oh, why would KKR not see value in a person who is at 12 crores? 18 crores, which would be deducted from our purse if we had reattained him, is a lot of money in the context of an auction. That was the trigger.”

“And in mini-auctions, you want to go with as much as you can to have the flexibility to look at options that might come your way. So from that perspective, if it were 12 crore, I think the decision would have been very different,” he concluded.

Mysore admitted that parting ways with Russell was a “strange feeling” for both parties, as he had never been put into an auction before. He described Russell as an “emotional” person and admitted that it later hit Russell how used to the Purple and Gold Franchise he was.

“It is a strange feeling for both of us. And he is always a very sensible and sensitive guy, easy to communicate with. Very emotional, but not clinical, like a few players I have dealt with. It hit him after a couple of days after that conversation. He came back to me and said, “Oh, I have really had a lot of sleepless nights wondering about where all of this could go. I am so used to the purple and gold, Knight Riders and relationships I have built with the franchise, you and the owners,” said Mysore.

“We jokingly discussed, and many people know that over the last 11 years that he has been with us, I have probably spoken with Dre more than I have spoken with my wife. We sent him to Dallas [to train with local NFL team] twice to help him become more fitter, more stronger. When he was handed the year-long anti-doping ban in 2017, I was very much in touch and sent our physio from TKR – Trinbago Knight Riders – to Jamaica to work with Dre and help him with his fitness and, more importantly, just to keep him in the right spirits. It was a tough year for him when a cricketer was unable to play. Imagine one year was a very long time, but then right after that was a retention year in 2018….

“….We did not know what form he was in, what fitness level he was in, but we retained him. But he always acknowledges that and always says, “I have tears in my eyes because I got a million-dollar contract and retention decision on him. All that kind of hit him after about 48 hours of the initial conversation on releasing him. Then the auction discussions started in a way, to say, how do we handle it? What happens? And all that,” he said.

Mysore admitted that over the years, he has been running the franchise, he has rarely experienced cricketers feeling that “they are done”.

“They always feel like, oh yeah, I have got cricket left in me – one year, two years, three years…that is where his [Russell’s] head was also. And he’s probably right, but he also realised by the time the 2026 IPL comes around, he will be 38. And for someone who is an allrounder like him, a pace bowler who comes in at death, has to smash, has to run a lot, field like he does, his instincts take over once he is on the field. He is a natural athlete, but body and age do catch up. But somewhere that conversation [retiring from IPL] did come up as an option, and he gave it more thought. For a variety of reasons, it appealed to him and said, yeah, why not? Let’s do this,” he stated.

Mysore said that when he shared with SRK that Russell was giving IPL retirement a thought, the owner suggested that he retire.

“I could see he was agonising over it, and, so when I shared this with SRK [Shah Rukh, KKR lead owner], it was actually SRK’s suggestion. Because, see, a player is thinking somewhere at the back of his mind, what happens after I hang up my boots? But I do not think they want to think about it also so much because professional athletes are like that. They believe I am still good, and Dre still is – he is fantastic and playing other leagues,” said Mysore.

“During the ILT20 match between Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Sharjah Warriorz also, he came in and straightaway smashed that six, which are trademark Dre sixes, which hits the sight screen and the ball comes back to the middle of the pitch literally. You start thinking, oh my God! And even with the ball, runs in first ball, clean bowled DK [Dinesh Karthik].”

“It just felt like he was very free in his mind after making the retirement decision. Because the guy took a couple of catches, is sliding, diving, and throwing. I sent him a note later, saying “What is going on here, Dre? How you doing power coach?” I was kidding him. Everybody has started calling him a power coach, and I think he loves it. We are very happy. I think he is very happy. He has completely accepted it, come to terms with it,” he concluded.

Mysore admitted that giving Russell a “power coach” post, without any coaching experience, was a “spur of the moment thought.”

“It was almost a spur of the moment thought. We were talking about what role he could best do and I said: what are you best known for? It is your ability to come in and finish games with very few balls left and go from ball one. With his bowling as well, he has always been one of these enforcer type of bowlers. Then fielding also, I have never seen somebody as athletic as him. I mean, now it is different, but when he was younger, if he was the guy on the boundary line, anyone who hit the ball to him would not venture to run a two because he used to be so quick and slide and pick up and throw, and he was so powerful.”

“The image of him when he walks in itself is like, oh my God, here he comes. There’s going to be some power hitting now. I said to him: “What can you help us, help the team the most with is all your experience and skills. When you bring them together, it is all about power, everything that you did.” So I said, “We will call you power coach,” he added.

Mysrore said that being termed so put a smile on Russell’s face, and he felt really good about the idea.

“Actually, that put a smile on his face, and Dre said, “maan, that sounds really good.” And it is probably the first of its kind that there is such terminology given to someone who can come in and help. So it is more than coaching, it is also a lot about communicating with certain types of players who are going to play that role, which Dre was playing so well, and basically talking about his experiences.

“KKR coaches used to always make him talk, and even when I used to have informal conversations, I used to say: “What do you think? You are sitting in the dugout, 16 runs needed in an over, and when you walk in, what are you thinking?” He says, “I back myself to get those 15-16 runs an over because I feel like I can clear the boundary at least twice an over, so I am calculating how many sixes are needed in the remaining balls in the innings.” That is unique, how many people can actually do that,” he concluded. (ANI)