The three-member Cricket Advisory Committee is expected to pick the next Indian team head coach on Monday. The committee has received 10 applications for the post, however, Ravi Shastri is believed to be the favourite for the job.
The committee, constituted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, comprises Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman. Besides Shastri, Virender Sehwag, Tom Moody, Dodda Ganesh, Lance Klusner, Rakesh Sharma, Lalchand Rajput, Richard Pybus, and an engineer with no cricket background, Upendranath Brahmachari, had sent in their applications.
The CAC is expected to interview only six of the ten candidates – Shastri, Sehwag, Moody, Rajput, Simmons and Pybus – for the post, PTI reported quoting unidentified officials. The next Indian coach will be given a two-year contract.
Shastri had served as the Indian team director between August 2014 and June 2016 and apparently also has a good rapport with Indian team captain, Virat Kohli.
The post had fell vacant following Anil Kumble’s unceremonious exit last month. It was rumoured that Kumble had quit because of a massive rift with Kohli. Addressing a press conference on June 22, Kohli did not address the speculation.
“Obviously Anil bhai has expressed his views and he’s taken the decision to step out and we will respect that decision,” Kohli had said. “We have created a culture over the last 3-4 years that whatever happens in the change room, we’ve tried to maintain the sanctity of the change room throughout.”
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