The script unfolded as expected in the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) working committee meeting as Ravi Shastri and the new support staff will continue with Team India till the 2015 World Cup.
R Sridhar, Sanjay Bangar and Bharath Arun will be the assistant coaches, while Duncan Fletcher will continue as the head coach of the Indian team. Shastri has also put his media commitments on hold to continue with the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side.
Shastri was appointed as team’s director for the limited-overs series in England, after India’s 3-1 drubbing in the Test series. There were suspicious whether the former batsman will continue with the team post England series.
“I don’t think it would be fair for me to do both,” Shastri told Wisden India. “I can’t comment on air about a player I’m advising in the dressing room. It’s important to have the players’ trust, and it wouldn’t be fair to the viewers either if I had to be guarded about what I said on air.”
Reports suggest that Team India players also wanted Shastri to be with the team. Shastri, however, will not be a permanent figure in the Indian dressing room until the World Cup, starting February 14 in Australia-New Zealand, reports suggest.
The former cricketer will continue to journey back to India for keeping an eye on the domestic games. The BCCI has decided to organise the domestic one-day tournament before the Ranji Trophy, keeping in mind the approaching World Cup.
