Representative image. Photo: Photo by Partha Bhaumik, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Ryan ten Doeschate has taken over as Knight Riders Sports’ Head of Cricket Strategy, a role overseeing cricketing direction across all of its franchise teams.
His responsibilities will include scouting, talent acquisition, squad planning and performance evaluation spanning the Knight Riders’ franchises worldwide.
In addition to the strategy role, ten Doeschate will act as Assistant Coach for Trinbago Knight Riders in the CPL, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the ILT20, and Los Angeles Knight Riders in the MLC.
He first became associated with the franchise as a Kolkata Knight Riders player in 2011, going on to win IPL titles with the team in 2012 and 2014.
A second stint followed as a coach from 2022 to 2024, during which he was part of the coaching group for KKR’s 2024 IPL title triumph.
Knight Riders Sports CEO Venky Mysore said the franchise was delighted to have ten Doeschate back, pointing to his grasp of the organisation’s cricketing philosophy and his broad franchise and international experience.
Ten Doeschate said the new role gave him a chance to work closely with coaching and analytics staff across the group to build stronger scouting and player-development systems.
His appointment follows his departure as assistant coach of the Indian men’s team after its recent white-ball series in England.
Knight Riders Sports counts Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment as its majority owner with a 55 per cent stake, alongside Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta’s Mehta Group holding the remaining 45 per cent; the group also owns Trinbago Knight Riders in the CPL.
Ten Doeschate built his playing reputation as a Netherlands international, hitting two centuries at the 2011 World Cup — including a famous 119 against England — and enjoyed a near two-decade career at Essex, whom he captained to two County Championship titles before retiring in 2021.
(Image: Photo by Partha Bhaumik, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)
