Sourav Ganguly is almost certain to be reinstated as the captain while John Wright is likely to take over as the coach of Kolkata Knight Riders in the third edition of the Indian Premier League in 2010, a team source said today.
Even as an official announcement is awaited, the source said that there could be a major reshuffle with former India coach Wright likely to replace John Buchanan as Knight Riders coach, while former Australian middle-order batsman Michael Bevan will be in the coaching panel.
Ganguly would be back at the helm in 2010 when his contract with the Kolkata team ends and the iconic Bengal cricketer had a one-on-one with prinicipal owner Shah Rukh Khan when the duo met in London to receive doctorates by the University of Central Lancashire last week.
"Ganguly and Shah Rukh Khan had a discussion about this when the left-hander was in London last week. They have agreed in priniciple that Ganguly will lead the side," the source said.
"There were also discussions about the possible coaches. Wright and Bevan are the front runners. It is up to Shah Rukh to take the final call."
Ganguly, meanwhile, said that nothing is final as yet and a proper announcement will be made in due time.
"I don't take the decision of KKR alone. There are a number of people involved in the process. But hopefully in due course of time we will get a person who will coach the team. The decision has not been made yet," Ganguly said.
The Knight Riders management was also tightlipped about the development.
When contacted, Knight Riders CEO Joy Bhattacharya said: "At the moment, I don't deny this (Ganguly as captain and Wright as the chief coach). However, there has not been any official announcement as yet."
Asked whether he was aware of this development, he said, "I don't want to comment on this. When there is an official announcement, we will let you know."
In the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in South Africa, Kolkata Knight Riders were plagued awith controversies especially after Ganguly was dethroned just two days before the start of the tournament.
Knight Riders coach John Buchanan, who later had to part ways with the side after their bottom place finish, had floated the idea of multiple captaincy but only to hand over the baton to New Zealand wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum.
IPL III, which was pre-poned to accommodate the ICC World Twenty20, begins in March next year and will overlap with Australia's tour of New Zealand.
