Punjab has initiated a significant restructuring of its coaching staff ahead of the 2026-27 domestic cricket season, appointing Amit Uniyal as the new head coach. Uniyal takes over the role from Sandeep Sharma, becoming the team's fourth head coach in as many seasons following the departures of Aavishkar Salvi, Wasim Jaffer, and Sandeep Sharma, each of whom served for only one season.
The overhaul extends to the entire backroom team. TP Singh has been appointed as the batting coach, Harmeet Singh as the bowling coach, and Manish Sharma as the fielding coach. These appointments fill the vacancies left by Uday Kaul, Gagandeep Singh, and Sandeep Sanwal.
Uniyal, a former left-arm seam-bowling allrounder for Punjab, brings significant experience to the role. During his playing career, he appeared in 29 first-class matches, claiming 91 wickets at an average of 29.94, and played 46 List A games along with four T20s, including two for the Rajasthan Royals in the 2009 IPL. Since 2017, he has been deeply involved in Chandigarh's cricketing structure, serving as an assistant coach in 2020-21 and as the chairman of selectors last season.
While Punjab has enjoyed success in white-ball formats, notably winning the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2023-24, the team has struggled in red-ball cricket. Over the past three Ranji Trophy seasons, they recorded only three wins against ten losses across 21 matches. Uniyal attributed the focus on T20 cricket to the modern desire to excel in the IPL, noting that the trend is prevalent across states like Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Mumbai. He emphasized that the team possesses the necessary talent and potential but must learn to play as a cohesive unit. His primary goal is to improve red-ball performance by developing bowlers capable of taking 20 wickets per match.
The team also faced instability in leadership and selection last season, utilizing 27 different players—the highest number in the Elite groups—and rotating captains between Naman Dhir, Uday Saharan, and Shubman Gill. A new selection committee, led by Gaurav Gupta, aims to rectify these inconsistencies. Uniyal expressed a commitment to providing players with proper opportunities, stating that he intends for the team to play tough cricket without the fear of losing their spots.
