Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary, on Friday rejected claims that the Board has approached any former Australian cricketer to be India’s next head coach and hinted that Rahul Dravid’s successor could be an Indian by saying that he should have a “deep understanding” of the game’s structure in the country.
While Dravid has reportedly told the Board that he is not interested in a third stint, former Australian players like Ricky Ponting and Justin Langer have claimed that they have turned down approaches for the high-profile position.
“Neither I nor the BCCI have approached any former Australian cricketer with
a coaching offer. The reports circulating in certain media sections are completely
incorrect,” Shah said in a statement.
Both Ponting and Langer were involved in the IPL as the head coaches of Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants, respectively. World Cup-winning former batting star Gautam Gambhir, who is currently mentoring Kolkata Knight Riders, is speculated to be among the top contenders for the post right now.
The BCCI secretary said that having in-depth knowledge of Indian domestic cricket will be one of the important criteria for appointing the next coach. He said the understanding would be crucial to “truly elevate Team India to the next level.”
“Finding the right coach for our national team is a meticulous and thorough process. We are focused on identifying individuals who possess a deep understanding of the Indian cricket structure and have risen through the ranks,” Shah said.
The BCCI has set May 27 as the last date for filing applications for the job.
Ponting had claimed on Thursday that he was approached to take over the role but said that he declined as it did not fit with his “lifestyle” right now.
Ponting’s former teammate Langer said he would “never say never” but at the same time revealed receiving crucial advice from Lucknow skipper KL Rahul. “I was talking to KL Rahul and he said, ‘You know, if you think there’s pressure and politics in an IPL team, multiply that by a thousand, (that is) coaching India. That was a good bit of advice, I guess,” Langer told BBC.
