Kolkata Knight Riders’ biggest match-winner, Andre Russell, shocked everyone last month. He refused to play this IPL season and has now become KKR’s “Power Coach,” marking his retirement from active play.
Russell used to lose sleep when he saw him in other jerseys
Andre Russell himself explained that seeing photoshopped images of him in other teams’ jerseys on social media was disturbing.
He said, “When you’re on social media, you keep seeing yourself photoshopped in different jerseys (of other teams). I felt weird seeing myself in any color other than purple and gold, and those thoughts kept running through my head, leading to a few sleepless nights.”
Meaning, he didn’t like any color other than purple and gold. He couldn’t sleep, worrying about being picked up by another team in the Indian Premier League.
Finally, he decided for himself: I’ll stop playing IPL and stay with Kolkata Knight Riders, even if it means taking up a coaching role for retirement purposes.
For more than ten years, Russell wreaked havoc for KKR. He did it all, hitting sixes, taking wickets, single-handedly turning matches around. The team also supported him fully, helping him with his fitness, and even giving him opportunities in other leagues.
People thought Russell would end his career only in a KKR jersey. That’s exactly what happened, but the method turned out to be a little different.
Why did KKR release Russell?
Actually, this was all in preparation for the IPL 2026 mega auction. Last season, Andre Russell scored just 167 runs and took 8 wickets in 13 matches. His performance wasn’t up to scratch. But that wasn’t the main reason.
The main game was money and strategy. CSK had released Mathisha Pathirana at the last minute, which gave them a lot of money. KKR felt that keeping Russell would leave their purse strings short.
Due to Russell’s salary bracket, 18 crore rupees would be deducted, but only 12 crore rupees were listed in the list.
Then, Kolkata released Andre Russell. The purse suddenly increased to 64.30 crore rupees. Now they became the richest team in the IPL auction.
They could buy anyone they wanted, including Cameron Green and Jamie Smith. They could put pressure on other teams.
The auction registration deadline was near. If Andre Russell hadn’t been informed soon, he would have gone to the auction and been picked up by another team. That was completely unacceptable to Kolkata .
Kolkata made a smart move, immediately offering him a power coach position. Russell was happy, fans were happy, and the team’s purse was also bigger. A win for everyone.
Now, instead of using the ball and bat on the field, Russell will teach young players power hitting.
KKR’s purple-gold colors will always be with him. Only the role has changed. Kolkata is sure to make the biggest splash in IPL 2026, even after Russell’s retirement.
