Former India captain Rahul Dravid was named coach of the India ‘A’ and under-19 teams after the cricket advisory committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) met here to discuss various issues pertaining to the Indian team.
Announcing Dravid as coach of the age-group and ‘A’ teams, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said that Ravi Shastri, who is currently the director of the senior Indian team, will continue in his post till the Board appoints a successor for former coach Duncan Fletcher. Shastri’s immediate assignment will be to guide the Indian team in its forthcoming tour of Bangladesh (one Test and three ODIs).
Rahul Dravid’s name was proposed by the cricket advisory committee (CAC) — comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman — which met Board president Jagmohan Dalmiya and the secretary here for the first time after it was formalised.
Dravid, who is currently working as the mentor of IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals, was apparently reluctant to take up the national team’s coaching owing to personal reasons, and instead accepted the offer of shaping up the next generation of cricketers.
Clearing the air on Shastri’s future, Thakur said, “There is a lot of speculation about his future, but leave that to us. We are not in a hurry to announce a name. The matter will be decided soon, and this committee has been asked to give its recommendations. Till the time we do not make any changes, the current set-up will continue.”
K.L. Rahul to miss tour
The BCCI secretary also said that young batsman K.L. Rahul will miss the trip to Bangladesh as he is yet to recover from a bout of dengue. There will be no replacement for the Karnataka batsman.
The BCCI also decided to take the advice of the cricket advisory committee and revive the ‘talent resource development wing’ which was started in 2002 by Jagmohan Dalmiya during his previous tenure as Board president. The BCCI has accepted the recommendation and will appoint the TRD officers, who will start scouting for talents, the secretary said.
The Board also accepted the suggestion of giving more overseas exposure to India ‘A’ and the junior teams. “This will help create a good bench strength and enhance the talent pool of the country,” he said.
Thakur said that the BCCI will also refurbish the National Cricket Academy and turn it into a centre of excellence. The States will also develop their cricket academies, preferably with residential facilities, he said.
“We will be hiring a number of coaches, physios and trainers. We would like to have a pyramid like structure and try to ensure similar coaching and infrastructure to all. All the committee members agreed to spare some time to help the Indian cricketers,” Thakur said, adding that the members of the CAC were working on honorary capacity.
The committee also advised on having a pool of 15 fast bowlers and 15 spinners, with a specialist coach for them. The selection will be made from under-19, under-23 and also from the senior team.
