India likely to get a new head coach before the end of the Champions Trophy

India’s current coach Anil Kumble’s tenure will come to an end at the end of the ongoing Champions Trophy. India is going to tour West Indies immediately after the ICC event so BCCI wants to identify a candidate before the end of the tournament which would end on 18th June.

BCCI has stated that Anil Kumble would get a direct entry into the final pool of the applicants on the basis of being the current coach. Despite this Kumble has decided to re-apply for the job by filing a formal application.

Lot of Aspiring candidates to choose

BCCI has got as many as six applications for the job. Apart from Kumble, candidates like Virender Sehwag, Tom Moody, Lalchand Rajpoot, Richard Pybus have applied for the job. All of them would be interviewed by BCCI’s advisory committee(CAC), which consists of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly.

Former Australian bowler pacer Craig McDermott has also applied for the job but his application was termed late as it arrived after the deadline set for 31st May. His application along with others would be considered and accordingly, the process and schedule of the final interview would be finalised by the three-member CAC committee who are scheduled to meet this week.

BCCI got concerned by the player feedback on Kumble, with many players along with Virat Kohli having reportedly complained about Kumble’s intimidating’ man-management.  According to India Today reports, this feedback is the main reason behind BCCI asking for fresh applications rather than just extending his contract.

In spite of all this, Kumble still has a god chance to retain his position as he was the earliest to apply for the job and he has put forward a detailed roadmap of his vision to take team India forward. Kumble got the job last year when BCCI advertised for the position for the first time. He has had a successful one-year tenure, especially in Test cricket in which India has won 12 of the 17 Tests played in that period losing just 1. The side even retained their No.1 status in the ICC Test rankings.

It is expected that new coach would be handed a 2-year contract with 2019 World Cup as the main goal.