Cricket legend Rahul Dravid is set to be India’s interim coach for the senior team after the T20 World Cup. Ravi Shastri will step down as coach of the Indian senior team after the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Dravid is reportedly set to take charge of the team for New Zealand’s tour of India, which will take place just after the World Cup. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) does not want to rush their decision to appoint a new coach and wants to bring in the right candidate, which is why they are appointing Dravid as the interim coach.
“We wanted the candidate whom we feel is best suited for the job to agree first (to apply for the job). We don’t want a situation where we get applications, but no one is seen as ideal. It will be embarrassing for the board and for the candidates too. So it’s better to find a suitable candidate first, till then Dravid can be interim coach,” said a BCCI official in a recent report.
Shastri, along with his backroom staff of Bharat Arun, R Sridhar, and Nick Webb, will leave at the end of the T20 World Cup. The 1983 World Cup winner became head coach of India in 2017 and his contract with the team was extended in 2019. Shastri reportedly turned down an offer to extend his stay with the Indian national team.
Rahul Dravid, too, reportedly rejected BCCI’s offer to make him the head coach of the Indian senior team, as the former Indian batsman has chosen to coach the India A and U-19 side.
Another report has revealed that the BCCI will not appoint a foreign coach and that Ravi Shastri’s replacement will be an Indian.
“The new head coach will be an Indian. Unlike the IPL, the Indian coaching job is a round-the-year job, and man-management works out a lot better with an Indian coach,” said a BCCI source.
Anil Kumble, who left his role as India coach in bitter circumstances, will not be in the running to replace Shastri as the BCCI does not want to cause any friction between the team and coach. Kumble and Virat Kohli were at loggerheads which resulted in the former leaving his post.
After New Zealand’s tour of India, India will tour South Africa, where they will play three Tests, four T20s, and three ODIs. India will then host West Indies and Sri Lanka, which will take place in early 2022.
