Dravid set to become Team India’s head coach after T20 World Cup

Former India skipper and current National Cricket Academy (NCA) Chief Rahul Dravid is all set to take over as the next head coach of the Indian cricket team after the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in the UAE and Oman from October 17.

As per reports, after some initial reluctance, 48-year-old Dravid agreed to the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s
(BCCI) offer.

“Dravid has confirmed he will be the next head coach of the Indian team. He will be stepping down as the head of the NCA soon,” a top BCCI official was quoted as saying by the Times of India (TOI).

“He (Rahul Dravid) was re-appointed as the NCA head last month. But the BCCI needed a strong candidate to take Indian cricket forward. He has worked so hard to develop the next line of Indian cricketers,” added the BCCI source.

Reportedly, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah held a meeting with Dravid and persuaded him to take up the role.

Dravid was previously in charge of India A and India U19 teams.

As a coach, Dravid is best known for strengthing the bench strength of India as ace cricketers like Rishabh Pant, Avesh Khan, Prithvi Shaw, Hanuma Vihari, and Shubman Gill have all come through a system created by him.

Earlier this year, Dravid had served as the head coach of the Indian team during the tour of Sri Lanka.

Despite the development, it has been learnt that the BCCI will soon issue an advertisement for the post to ensure that due process is followed.

Current coach Ravi Shastri took a fee of Rs 8.5 crore for the position and reports state that the board is offering Dravid a significant hike, which will be more than his NCA remuneration as well as Shastri’s current salary.

Meanwhile, former India pacer Paras Mhambrey is likely to be the appointed as the next bowling coach while Vikram Rathour would possibly continue to serve as the batting coach of Team India.

As per the report, Dravid has been offered a two-year contract as India’s head coach and the contract will end after the ICC World Cup in 2023.

If the reports come true, Dravid’s first assignment as the full-time head coach will be the home series against New Zealand, which is scheduled to begin less than a week after the final of the T20 World Cup.

Team India is scheduled to play three T20Is matches on November 17, 19 and 21 at Jaipur, Ranchi and Kolkata respectively against the Kiwis.

The T20I series will be followed by two Tests, starting November 25 in Kanpur and December 3 in Mumbai respectively.

After the home series against the Kiwis, the Indian team will tour South Africa for three Tests, as many One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and four T20Is.

The tour will kick-off with the first Test at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg from December 17.

The Men in Blue will play their last game, the fourth and final T20I, on January 26 in Paarl’s Boland Park before heading home.

News Desk

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