By: Drcricket7 Staff
It is no secret that the Team India has been playing some exciting cricket under Team Director Ravi Shastri. And while his contract with the three assistant coaches – Bharat Arun, R. Sridhar and Sanjay Bangar – was extended till the World T20 in September, it has been learnt that Ravi Shastri wants a longer tenure so that he can work more closely with the Indian team to take it to greater heights.
Speaking to Drcricket7, a senior BCCI official confirmed the development and said that Shastri doesn’t mind a three-year contract, to start with, so that he can implement his plans and ideas and take Indian cricket forward.
“See, it is pretty evident that the boys have really taken to the new management and they understand each other’s pulse. Shastri has long term plans and wants a three to five years so that he along with his team can work towards his goal of making the Indian team No. 1 in both Tests and ODIs. While nothing has been confirmed yet, but in all likelihood he will be given the contract if the team does well,” he said.
Asked if that means the end of BCCI’s fascination with foreign coaches, the official said: “Let’s get this clear. It is not like we want foreigners and they bring something extraordinary to the table. As long as we get the desired result and the players are happy, we have no issue with Indian coaches. In fact, it helps if the coach is Indians as he then understands how the Board functions and also the players don’t have a language barrier.”
In fact, he went on to add that even in Ravi Shastri’s earlier stint during 2007, it was the former India skipper who didn’t want an extension. “Last time when he took over after Greg Chappell left, it is not that we didn’t want him to stay. It was Shastri himself who had made it clear that he had a contract with a sports broadcaster and that he didn’t want to break that,” he added.
