Mithali Raj terminated her involvement as a team coach with Gujarat Giants (GG) before the 2025 Women’s Premier League (WPL) which sees the conclusion of her two-year stint with the team, i.e. The ex-Indian captain has diverted her attention to the Andhra Cricket Association where she is engaged on the task of building state-level cricketing scaffolding and coaching the senior team.
This major change in GG also marks the leaving of Nooshin Al Khadeer, their assistant coach in the final part of the previous two years. Although Mithali Raj leaves Gujarat Giants to focus on state-level progression, Al Khadeer is now coaching the Indian U-19 women’s team, and carefully guiding them in their defense of the U-19 World Cup in Malaysia.
Mihtali Raj part ways with Gujarat Giants just before mini-auction
This announcement coincides with the WPL mini-auction on December 15, which is supposed to take place in Bengaluru. Reports suggest that Mithali Raj parted ways with Gujarat Giants after a decision was finalized before the domestic season kicked off. Despite these developments, GG’s coaching team is still solid, as Michael Klinger still coaches the team as head coach, with Daniel Marsh assisting as batting coach and Pravin Tambe coaching the bowlers.
Klinger highlighted as a team priority the creation of a winning environment following their disappointing second two WPL seasons, in which GG ended last in the standings. “We have laid a strong foundation and are excited to build on it with our retained players, he said. When Mithali Raj bids adieu to Gujarat Giants, the team has INR 4.4 crore to curate a new squad, the largest purse in the auction.
GG, owned by Adani Sportsline, has released six players, including Sneh Rana, who captained the inaugural season. After Mithali Raj’s exit from Gujarat Giants, the franchise is determined to start anew with the ambition of rewriting its WPL narrative.
Also, see: Money spent at each IPL auction since 2008