BCCI likely to persist with Ravi Shastri as the head coach

India bowed out of the 2019 World Cup after their defeat to New Zealand in the semis at the Old Trafford in Manchester. Even after the loss, Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, and a few other players are impressed with Ravi Shastri’s style of guiding the team. Shastri, who’s a former Indian cricketer, has also managed to earn the confidence of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

He was appointed after India’s Champions Trophy 2017 exit. Kohli and the team coach Anil Kumble were involved in an altercation following which the latter stepped down from the role. Shastri came in thereafter. Previously, the 57-year-old was the director of Indian cricket from India’s tour of England in 2014 until the 2015 edition of the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

“Ravi (Shastri) has done everything right for the team. They have become No.1 in Tests, they were No.2 in ODIs till England took over. One bad match does not make the coach bad. If he reapplies he will get preference,” a BCCI official was quoted as saying in NDTV Sports. Shastri earns an amount in excess of INR 8 crores for the world’s richest cricket board.

July 30- The last day of application

Meanwhile, the board has extended the tenure of the coach and the support staff by 45 days. India is scheduled to tour the West Indies for a full-fledged ODIs, T20Is and Test series, which is scheduled to get underway on August 3 and continue until September 3. Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun and others need to re-apply for their respective positions after the conclusion of the tour.

Recently Shankar Basu and Patrick Farhart bid adieu to the team. Seven posts — Head coach, batting coach, bowling coach, fielding coach, physiotherapist, strength and conditioning coach and administrative manager — were advertised by the BCCI. The last date of application for the positions is on July 30.

The head coach will be picked up by the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), which is presently headed by former cricketer Kapil Dev, with Shantha Rangaswamy and Anshuman Gaekwad as his colleagues. But the body will consult with the Indian selectors before zeroing in on the other coaches.