When Chandigarh take on Mumbai at the Wankhede Stadium in their opening match of the 2026-27 Ranji Trophy, Vinayak Samant will be leading the visitors from the dugout. The former Mumbai wicketkeeper has been appointed Chandigarh’s head coach ahead of the season, a move confirmed just a day before the team’s first practice session in Mumbai.
Samant, who played 101 first-class matches for Mumbai and Tripura before retiring in 2011, accepted the coaching role after being approached by Chandigarh. “Chandigarh asked me to be their head coach for this season yesterday, and I said ‘yes’. It’s an honour to coach a first-class team again,” he told the Times of India.
This will be the first time Chandigarh competes at the Wankhede Stadium, a venue familiar to Samant from his playing days. He hopes his experience there and his knowledge of Mumbai’s players will give his new team an edge. “I hope to help Chandigarh’s players with my knowledge of Mumbai and its players in the first match,” Samant said.
Before taking on this role, Samant was the head coach of Bihar for two seasons. He also coached Mumbai’s Under-23 team to the Col CK Nayudu Trophy title in the 2023-24 season. His coaching career includes stints as head coach of Mumbai and the Cricket Club of India, and he worked as the fielding coach at the Assam Cricket Association’s academy during the 2023-24 season.
Chandigarh arrived in Mumbai on Thursday and held their first practice session at the Wankhede on Friday. The team will face a familiar opponent in Mumbai but with a new leader in Samant, who brings a deep understanding of the opposition and the conditions at one of India’s most iconic grounds.
According to Yahoo Sports.