Mumbai/IBNS: In yet another twist of the tale, latest reports state that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)s efforts to appoint Gautam Gambhir as Indian cricket teams next head coach have reached an advanced level as Rahul Dravids contract is ending after the forthcoming T20 World Cup and he has no intention of extending it.
Times Internet-owned cricket news portal Cricbuzz reported, citing a very high-profile owner of an IPL franchise who is very close to the BCCI top brass, that Gautam Gambhirs appointment as Rahul Dravids successor is a done deal, and the official announcement regarding the development would come soon.
Efforts are being made to rope in Gautam Gambhir as Indias next head coach, a high profile commentator, who is very clued to the happenings in the BCCI, told Cricbuzz, adding that the delay in official announcement suggests that negotiations are underway on multiple fronts — between the two parties and, perhaps, with some others too.
Meanwhile, Hindustan Times reported that BCCI was in no rush to release the list of applicants for Indian cricket teams head coach role, or even talk about it, as the deadline for applicants ended on Monday (May 27).
According to the report, BCCI is all set to bide time to finalize Indias head coach as there is still no clarity on Gambhir and no other noted foreign name has applied.
Without being concerned with media reports and social media chatter, BCCI might choose to wait to find the head coach even after the T20 World Cup ends, as the teams immediate assignment will be a series against Zimbabwe, where majority of senior players will anyway be rested and the squad could be coached by the National Cricket Academy (NCA) staff headed by VVS Laxman, as reported by Hindustan Times.
Demands to appoint Gautam Gambhir as team Indias next head coach came to fore after the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) became the IPL 2024 champion under Gambhirs mentorship.
