Harsha Bhogle believes Zaheer Khan will be an Indian coach in future

Zaheer Khan can be a great mentor to the young Indian fast bowlers

Eminent cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle believes that former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan will be the coach of the Indian cricket team in the near future. Zaheer was appointed the captain of the Delhi Daredevils this season and he has been doing a decent job for the franchise as they have won 3 out of the 4 games they have played.

This year, the Delhi franchise remodelled their vision and decided to bank on the Indian youngsters like Karun Nair, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer to revive their dwindling fortunes in the tournament. They also roped in Rahul Dravid as their mentor and according to Harsha Bhogle, it is the Zaheer-Dravid combination which has been working very well and together they can shape up India’s future too.

“Rahul Dravid’s approach, even at the Rajasthan Royals, was to pick talent and show it the way, rather than pick expensive match-winners. At DD, he has a very talented core in Shreyas Iyer, Mayank Agarwal, Sanju Samson and Karun Nair and, indeed, in Quinton de Kock who is a precocious talent,” Harsha wrote in his column in Times of India.

Zaheer Khan will be an India coach

He also added, “They will enjoy seeing a conscientious, devoted superstar working as hard as them to help them get better. Dravid won’t look down on ramp shots or reverse sweeps and will largely, let young batsmen play to their strengths. And he is aware that there is a genuine T20 match-winner in JP Duminy to turn to in case the top-order falters.” 

Harsha also hailed the appointment of Zaheer Khan as a skipper and wrote, “I also believe it was a master stroke to appoint Zaheer Khan as captain. He is, even if the present tense may not be valid for too long, as shrewd a bowler as there has been in Indian cricket. But even more so, he has been a bowling captain for a long time and seems to have time for other bowlers. His handling of Mohammed Shami will benefit Indian cricket.”

Talking about Zaheer Khan, he added, “He may not scream from the rooftops but he is very confident and positive, as I saw first-hand when he was in our studio at Star Sports. And by giving him the job, the Daredevils have ensured that he isn’t just playing out the last chapter of his career but, in effect, starting the first chapter of another. I have no doubt at all in my mind that Zaheer Khan will be an India coach in the not-too-distant future and the IPL is a great training ground for him.” 

‘The voice of Indian cricket’ is surely tipping the left-arm pacer to be at the helm of the Indian cricket soon. Given Zaheer’s experience and expertise, he surely is a candidate to watch out for. He can be the messiah to India’s new generation fast bowlers who are trying to adapt to the different formats of the game.