Ponting Left With Triple Coaching Vacancy as Hopes and Haddin Quit Punjab Kings

Ricky Ponting's support staff has been gutted just months out from IPL 2027. Fast-bowling coach James Hopes and fielding coach Brad Haddin have both informed Punjab Kings they are stepping down, forcing the franchise to search for at least three new coaches before next season's auction in mid-December. Hopes, who followed Ponting to Punjab from Delhi Capitals and spent two seasons with the Kings, has been appointed head coach of Queensland and the Brisbane Heat. Haddin, the former Australia wicketkeeper who had been part of the PBKS backroom since Trevor Bayliss's tenure in 2022, takes over as head coach of New South Wales. Both men are currently tied up in Sheffield Shield duty — Hopes with Queensland against Western Australia in Perth, Haddin with New South Wales against Tasmania in Sydney. Their exits follow spin-bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule, who left after IPL 2026 to join the Indian men's setup. Ponting will have the final say on replacements, with the franchise confirming "the head coach will take the call." The departures sting for a side that has never won the IPL and narrowly missed the 2026 playoffs, finishing fifth on 15 points — a season that began with six straight wins but collapsed into six defeats from the final seven games.