Kane Williamson Joins Indian Franchise After Retiring From Cricket

Kane Williamson joins in a new role [Source: AFP]Kane Williamson, who hung up his boots from international cricket days ago, has joined an Indian franchise ahead of The Hundred 2026. The New Zealand ex-skipper and veteran cricketer has effectively joined a franchise owned by an IPL team owner in the premier English domestic T20 tournament.Williamson has been productive since his retirement. After officially drawing the end line from playing cricket, Kane Williamson announced his new book, aka autobiography, “Bare Margins.” Now, Williamson joining The Hundred franchise in a very important role also adds to his service to cricket despite his retirement.Kane Williamson joins Manchester Super Giants as batting coachWilliamson has shaken hands with the RPSG Group, the owner of the Lucknow Super Giants and Manchester Super Giants teams, to join the unit as a batting coach. MSG announced the development on July 11 on their official social media handle.“Charisma. Coolness. Kane. Delighted to have Williamson at Manchester Super Giants as the men’s team batting coach ahead of the upcoming #TheHundred campaign,” the franchise wrote.undefined @undefined Charisma. Coolness. Kane. 😍 Delighted to have Kane Williamson at Manchester Super Giants as the men’s team batting coach ahead of the upcoming #TheHundred campaign ✨ Jul 11, 2026, 6:00 PM The tenure for Williamson’s stint starts immediately, with only days left before the tournament’s commencement. Interestingly, Manchester Super Giants themselves had a very big transition with their team name and logo, which were completely renewed under the influence of Dr. Sanjiv Goenka. Also Read- Virat Kohli’s Tribute Leaves Fans Emotional After Kane Williamson’s RetirementWho has Kane Williamson replaced as Manchester Super Giants' batting coach?Ahead of the 2026 season, the whole management was done by Justin Langer as the head coach of the men’s team, reporting to Tom Moody, the Global Director of Cricket for the team. Williamson’s addition only adds to the staff power and the expertise the Kiwi vet brings to the table. Williamson himself has played The Hundred for a single season in 2025, representing the London Spirit, where he captained the team and bagged 204 runs from 8 matches while averaging 25.50.The appointment from Super Giants came swiftly ahead of the 2026 season, which means that Williamson will be effectively removed of any contract that London Spirit has with him. Will Kane Williamson retire from domestic cricket as well?Officially, Kane’s appointment as Super Giants men’s team’s head coach brings the fact to the fore that he will not be playing cricket in The Hundred, at least in the upcoming seasons. Accepting the role of a coach means Kane has pondered the thought of mentoring cricketers and moving away from the game itself. While there have been no talks of an official retirement from professional cricket, a silent goodbye from the T20 format might as well be on the cards for the calm and cool Williamson. Speaking of his international and national domestic tournaments, his last ever appearance in such leagues was in the Bangladesh Premier League 2025-26 and in the SA20 2026, where he represented Rajshahi Warriors and Durban Super Giants, respectively.Nevertheless, The Hundred 2026 begins on July 21, and with prep time limited, Kane Williamson, alongside Tom Moody, will be schooling and mentoring a talented group of cricketers led by Aiden Markram.Also Read- How Ready Is Harry Brook To Solve The England All-Format Captaincy Puzzle?