'Only read it in newspapers' - BCCI President Sourav Ganguly on Rahul Dravid's appointment as India Head Coach

Former India cricket and Board of Control for Cricket of India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly has broken his silence on Rahul Dravid’s appointment as Team India Head Coach after the incumbent Ravi Shastri’s tenure comes to an end.

Shastri informed the BCCI earlier that the T20 World Cup 2021 will be his final assignment with the team, with bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar also set to leave their posts after the conclusion of the multi-team tournament, which ends on November 14.

Dravid, 48, has been considered as the front-runner to take over the baton from Shastri, who has been with the team ever since 2017. Dravid, who has been previously offered the role but denied twice, had reportedly agreed with BCCI’s proposal this time around, although Ganguly revealed that he has “only read it in newspapers, putting those confirmations on hold.

“There’s no confirmation, I only read it in the newspapers. There is due process. It has been advertised. If he wants to apply, then he will,” Ganguly said on the ‘Salaam Cricket’ show of Aaj Tak.

“Right now, he [Rahul Dravid] is the director of NCA. He came to meet us in Dubai to talk about NCA. How to take it forward. We all believe the NCA has a big role in developing the future of Indian cricket. NCA creates the next generation of Indian cricketers. So, he wanted to discuss that,” Ganguly added.

Ganguly stated that much like the previous occasions, Dravid is not “that interested” to take the role this time too. “We had a chat with him earlier too on whether he wants to take up the coaching role of the senior side, but he didn’t seem that interested. His stand is pretty much the same even now. He asked for some time. Let’s see what happens.”

Dravid has previously served as India’s overseas batting consultant in 2018. He also travelled as the team’s coach to Sri Lanka for the limited-overs series in July, in the absence of Shastri, Arun and Vikram Rathour, who were all involved with the Indian Test squad in the United Kingdom from early June to mid-September for the World Test Championship final and the five-Test Pataudi trophy against England.