The hunt for the Indian men’s senior cricket team is underway with the deadline for applications just a week away. According to multiple reports, former India batter Gautam Gambhir is one of the top contenders to replace Rahul Dravid as head coach. Besides Gambhir, three Indian Premier League (IPL) coaches — Stephen Fleming (CSK), Justin Langer (LSG) and Mahela Jayawardene (Mumbai Indians Director of Cricket) are also under BCCI’s radar for the high-stakes job. Reports have also emerged that BCCI’s Operations Team has also approached Gujarat Titans head coach and former India pacer Ashish Nehra for the job.
However, Nehra is reluctant to take the job as he isn’t sure about doing a full-time job across formats. It has been learnt that the BCCI is likely to face more challenges in their hunt for a new head coach for the Indian team.
BCCI face a tough competition for the candidates from the IPL franchises. Also, the candidates are not sure about being on the road with the team for 10 months in a year till the next ODI World Cup in 2027.
As things stand, Gambhir remains BCCI’s priority. According to a report in the Times of India, the BCCI is likely to speak with Gambhir in the coming days. Gambhir is with KKR (as a mentor) for the IPL playoffs in Ahmedabad, and the two-time champions reached the final of IPL on Tuesday.
“There has been no formal communication with the potential candidates. All these coaches are biding their time and weighing options. But it seems Gambhir’s stocks have risen. It is likely that the board officials will speak with Gambhir in Ahmedabad where he is with KKR for the IPL playoffs,” the report claimed.
The report also claimed that Gambhir is in touch with the senior members of the team, including former captain Virat Kohli.
Gambhir and Kohli have had quite the rivalry on the field, but the two have sorted out their past differences.
“It is learnt that Gambhir and senior players in the Indian team have been getting along quite well of late. If people are talking about Gambhir’s friction with Virat Kohli, it can be confirmed that the two have always got along well off the field. Even after the bust-up during an IPL match last year, the two were made to sit down and sort out any issue if they indeed had one,” the report added.
