Ravi Shastri widely tipped to become India Coach, according to reports

Former Indian Team Director Ravi Shastri has formally applied for the position of India’s head coach on Monday. Shastri was a frontrunner to take the position last year but the Cricket Advisory Committee preferred Anil Kumble over the Mumbaikar. After a lot of contemplation, Shastri put his name forward for the most significant job in India.

According to NDTV, Sachin Tendulkar had urged Shastri to apply for the position after former coach Kumble stepped down from his position last month. The Indian cricketers including skipper Kohli had a rough time working with the former leg-spinner, whose methods were termed as overbearing. Kumble subsequently resigned from the post saying that the relationship with the captain is now ‘untenable’.

Shastri, according to NDTV source, is a favourite amongst the current crop of Indian cricketers. Recently, Dhawan spoke highly of the former Director. Kohli had always mentioned the immense contributions of Shastri behind the scenes during his 2-year tenure with the team. Under Shastri’s tenure, India won a Test series in Sri Lanka after 22 years and also won the Asia Cup.

The former all-rounder wasn’t happy with the way he was dealt with during last year’s interviews. He made sly remarks on Ganguly, who is a part of the CAC, which irked the former Bengal batsman. Ganguly had questioned Shastri’s seriousness for the job as he appeared for the interview via Skype rather than being present in person. Both seem to have moved on since then and are expected to meet on July 10, when all the interviews will be conducted in Mumbai.

Other candidates for the post

Apart from Shastri, Virender Sehwag, Tom Moody Dodda Ganesh, Richard Pybus and Lalchand Rajput have also applied for the job. Moody will offer stern competition to Shastri but given his popularity amongst the team and his relationship with Kohli, Shastri is expected to get the position this time around.