Mumbai Indians have won the WPL twice. They have been coached by Charlotte Edwards. Then Lisa Keightley. Now someone who knows what it takes to build a title-winning team from scratch. He did it with Adelaide Strikers in Australia. He did it with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in India. And now he brings that specific expertise to the most successful franchise in WPL history. The rebuild at MI starts on September 28.
The Announcement: Luke Williams Is MI’s New WPL Coach
Mumbai Indians officially confirmed Luke Williams as their new WPL head coach on September 24, 2026. The appointment was announced via the franchise’s official channels alongside statements from both the new coach and MI owner Nita Ambani.
Williams takes over from Lisa Keightley, who stepped down from the role after just one season in charge. Keightley had been appointed in September 2025, replacing Charlotte Edwards when she departed to become England Women’s head coach. Her tenure lasted just over a year. No official reason for her departure was disclosed by the franchise.
Who Is Luke Williams?
Luke Williams is one of the most decorated women’s cricket coaches currently working anywhere in the world. His record across multiple competitions on multiple continents makes him one of the most in-demand coaching names in franchise women’s cricket.
He guided the Adelaide Strikers to back-to-back Women’s Big Bash League titles in 2022 and 2023. Those consecutive championships established his reputation as someone who can build a consistent winning culture rather than produce one-off results.
He then moved to the WPL in 2024 as Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s head coach. RCB had never won a WPL title. They had come close without getting over the line. Williams arrived and changed that in his very first season. He orchestrated RCB’s maiden WPL title run with an emphasis on data-led matchups and spin execution. One season. One title. That is what he does.
He was part of the RCB setup for the subsequent 2025 season before stepping away to focus on WBBL commitments with Adelaide Strikers. Now he arrives at MI with a coaching record that reads three titles in three different competitions across two countries.
What Williams Said About Joining MI
Williams was direct about his excitement at joining the franchise. He said he is really excited to be joining Mumbai Indians, a respected and successful organisation. He said he is looking forward to working with a talented group of players and support staff.
He added there is a great opportunity to build something together and play an exciting brand of cricket. He finished by saying he is looking forward to giving the fans plenty to be proud of.
Those words are not generic. They carry specific intent. An exciting brand of cricket is a coaching philosophy. It tells you that Williams plans to play aggressive, attacking women’s cricket at MI. That approach is consistent with his RCB tenure where his emphasis on spin execution and data-led matchups produced a maiden title in the competition’s second edition.
What Nita Ambani Said
MI owner Nita Ambani welcomed Williams warmly while acknowledging the work Keightley had done. She said Luke is a proven winner and brings rich experience, a deep understanding of the women’s game, and a strong commitment to developing players.
She then referenced captain Harmanpreet Kaur directly. She said she is confident that with Luke’s guidance and Harman’s leadership, they will continue to grow, achieve greater success, and inspire young girls everywhere to dream big.
That reference to Harmanpreet is important. The captain is staying. The leadership core at MI remains. Williams builds around a player who has led MI to two WPL titles and who brings exceptional experience to any franchise she represents.
Harmanpreet Kaur Remains Captain
The captain around whom Williams will build his MI WPL 2027 campaign is one of women’s cricket’s most decorated leaders. Harmanpreet Kaur captained MI to the WPL title in 2023 and again in 2025 under Charlotte Edwards. She brings deep knowledge of the franchise, the WPL format, and the India domestic player pool.
Their partnership is the most interesting coaching-captaincy combination in WPL 2027 on paper. Williams guided RCB to a title without Harmanpreet. Harmanpreet won titles without Williams. Together they represent a combination that neither MI nor the broader WPL has seen before. The women’s cricket season that Harmanpreet is building on heading into WPL 2027 is explored in our piece on the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 tournament guide, which captures how her leadership shaped India’s recent women’s cricket calendar.
What Williams Must Do First For MI
The appointment came with an immediate deadline attached. Williams’ first task will be to finalise the list of retentions before the September 28 deadline. The retention window for WPL 2027 closes on September 28, just four days after his appointment.
That is an extremely tight turnaround for a new coach to understand a squad, evaluate player values, and make retention decisions that will shape the franchise’s auction strategy. The WPL 2027 mini-auction will be held in Kochi on October 28. The season itself runs from January 14 to February 7, 2027.
Making the right retention calls in four days is the first genuine test of Williams’ franchise cricket intelligence. A coach who has managed WBBL rosters and WPL rosters across multiple competition cycles will be better equipped for this specific challenge than most incoming appointments would be.
Lisa Keightley’s Brief Tenure and What Comes Next
Keightley’s departure from MI after one season carries no negative reflection on her work. Her broader career in women’s cricket remains outstanding. She played nine Tests, 82 ODIs, and one T20I for Australia. She scored four ODI centuries. She coached England Women and was a significant figure in their development.
Following her MI departure, Keightley has been appointed Cricket Australia’s national development lead. She will continue as head coach of Sydney Thunder in the WBBL alongside her CA duties. Her Hundred position as coach of MI London remains unclear following the announcement.
Keightley stepped into an impossible coaching position. Replacing Charlotte Edwards after back-to-back WPL titles was always going to be difficult. She has moved on with her professional reputation entirely intact.
Williams’ Coaching CV: Why MI Chose Him
The decision to appoint Williams follows a clear logic. MI needed someone who had already built a title-winning team in the WPL specifically. Williams had done that at RCB in 2024. He knew the Indian conditions. He knew the WPL auction structure. He understood how to construct a playing group around domestic Indian talent and international overseas signings.
His emphasis on data-led matchups and spin execution is particularly well suited to Mumbai’s home ground at the Wankhede Stadium, where the surface can assist slow bowlers as the tournament progresses. Two WBBL titles and one WPL title in three seasons across two countries is a coaching record that speaks for itself. The broader story of how coaches like Williams have become central to franchise women’s cricket’s rapid growth is explored in our piece on the impact of franchise leagues on cricket.
Conclusion
Luke Williams is Mumbai Indians’ new WPL head coach for the 2027 season. He replaces Lisa Keightley after one season. He won Adelaide Strikers back-to-back WBBL titles in 2022 and 2023. He then won RCB their maiden WPL title in 2024. He arrives at MI with a coaching record that no other candidate in women’s franchise cricket can match on recent results. Harmanpreet Kaur captains. Williams coaches. The retention window closes September 28. The auction is October 28 in Kochi. WPL 2027 begins January 14. The rebuild starts today.
