Bangar steps down as Kings XI coach

India's batting coach Sanjay Bangar has stepped down as coach of the Kings XI Punjab franchise in the IPL. "I submitted my resignation in the last week of November. They [the franchise] came back to me around the second week of December," Bangar told ESPNcricinfo. "I was totally engrossed in the [England] series and that is the reason why I sort of waited till the end of the series."

In 2014, Bangar, 44, was initially appointed assistant coach before being promoted to head coach. The results were instant as Kings XI made the final of the IPL for the first time. However, the team's performance nosedived just as swiftly as they finished at the bottom of the table in the next two editions.

Bangar did not elaborate on whether the alleged misunderstandings with one of the team's co-owners had played a part in his resignation. "It is a professional set-up. The IPL is a model which is run on producing results," he was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times. "In the course of the tournament, there are debates and deliberations. You take certain decisions and there are some which are right and there are some which don't go your way. It is all a part and parcel. We as professionals need to accept this thing. (For the last) two seasons we didn't get the results we wanted. It was time to move on and let fresh ideas come in."

Bangar, however, acknowledged the franchise's "huge help" [ahead of his role with the Indian team]. "You don't have much time to work on the players during the IPL. It is about man-management of players of various international credentials, managing young players and finding the right balance," he said. "It is a very profit-driven model where cost has to be managed, the dynamics of the auction need to be understood and manage a large group of players in a short time. Those are the valuable lessons I have learnt.

"It's been a fabulous journey. It gives me immense satisfaction to see the players whom I picked - from when they were in their formative years - to benefit from the exposure. There are a number of players who were able to showcase their talent like Manan Vohra, Sandeep Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, who weren't getting the opportunities. Axar Patel, who was last IPL's best young cricketer, went on to play for India. Their progress gives me immense pride. We topped the league and reaching the final was the best part of my time with Kings XI," he said

Bangar said he hadn't decided on his future course of action yet. "I am not in talks with any other franchise as of now," he said. "I will weigh my options."