Reports: Sourav Ganguly was in two minds about Ravi Shastri's appointment

Ganguly got his way with the bowling coach

What’s the story?

Sourav Ganguly had originally raised concerns about selecting Ravi Shastri as the Indian coach and had come out in support of Virender Sehwag. However, it is believed the Sachin Tendulkar backed Virat Kohli’s choice, leading to the appointment of Ravi Shastri.

Ganguly did, however, get his way with the bowling coach; 38-year old Zaheer Khan was appointed as per Ganguly’s recommendation. 

"Sourav was brought around and convinced about Ravi after it was agreed that Zaheer would be made the bowling coach," a BCCI official told NDTV.

In case you didn’t know…

In 2016, when Shastri’s contract as Team Director expired, he reapplied for the role. However, a rift with Ganguly led to his contract not being extended and Anil Kumble was hired. 

When Kumble resigned, Shastri did not reapply for the job. However, the deadline was extended, allowing Shastri to apply. He then appeared as the frontrunner and was named the coach ultimately.

The details

Ravi Shastri was chosen by the CAC last night but was not afforded the luxury of picking his own bowling coach. Zaheer Khan, who was named the bowling coach, has very little coaching experience but has played the role of a mentor and captain in the Delhi Daredevils camp for some years now. 

Sachin Tendulkar, on the other hand, was in favour of letting Virat Kohli make his choice of coach from the three shortlisted candidates: Tom Moody, Ravi Shastri and Virender Sehwag. 

What’s next?

The CAC have told Kohli that it is his responsibility to get along well with the coach now, as the coaching staff will hold their position until after the 2019 World Cup. India next tour Sri Lanka, which is not expected to be the biggest challenge for the first ranked Test team.

But a tour of South Africa and England next year means that India will need all the help they can get. 

Author’s take 

It’s shocking that a captain can choose India’s coach. But now that is the world we live in. Ganguly put his foot down, well kind of, by insisting on Zaheer Khan as the bowling coach. This is possibly a step by the CAC to assert its power while also maintaining checks and balances, making sure the Kohli-Shastri partnership doesn’t get too powerful.

Hopefully, there will come a day when Indian cricket stops being a contest of who’s more powerful, with everyone just acting for the good of the game.