Abhay Sharma applies for Team India's fielding coach position

Abhay Sharma has applied for Team India’s fielding coach position. He had previously emerged as one of the strong contenders for the post and was likely to apply for the position. He has worked with India A and India U-19 teams before and has a considerable amount of experience under his sleeves.

Team India’s current fielding coach R Sridhar’s tenure with the team ends this November and thus the management is looking for his replacement. A BCCI source has come forward to provide information about Sharma applying for team India’s fielding coach position.

“Abhay’s (Sharma) application has come today,” a BCCI source said as quoted by The Hindu. Sharma played 89 first-class games wherein he represented Delhi, Railways, and Rajasthan. He was team India’s fielding coach when the side had traveled to Zimbabwe in the year 2016. He was also associated with the team on their tours to USA and West Indies in the same year.

Recently, the women’s cricket team’s player Harmanpreet Kaur had lavished praises on Sharma for his stint with the team during their tour to England earlier this year. He, however, wasn’t a part of the team for their next multi-format tour Down Under. Abhay Sharma was a part of the Indian side for as many as ten India A tours. Sharma is also one of the coaches of the National Cricket Academy and has closely worked with Rahul Dravid.

Team India’s support staff to undergo a complete overhaul

Team India head coach Ravi Shastri’s tenure with the team ends in November and thus he is on his last assignment with the team for the T20 World Cup. The BCCI has been putting their thinking hats on for his replacement in the side. It was previously reported that the board is aiming to rope in an Indian as his replacement.

Rahul Dravid who has recently applied for the position is more likely to take up the mantle. Opening up on it, the former India cricketer and commentator Aakash Chopra had said, “It’s going to be very interesting. If he has put his name in then… it’s a race where no other coach can win. The moment Rahul Dravid has put his name, others’ applications are already redundant,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.