The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that an advertisement to hire a new head coach will be released soon. Rahul Dravid, who has been Team India’s head coach since November 2021 and saw his contract being extended after the conclusion of the 2023 ODI World Cup. But, it doesn’t look like Dravid is going to be handed an extension, with the board rolling out the advertisement for a new coach soon. Dravid’s current contract with the BCCI, as the head coach of the Indian team, runs out in June, when the Indian team will also be involved in a T20 World Cup campaign.
Dravid put pen to paper on an extension as the head coach of the Indian team, along with his support staff, in November 2023. But, the new contract was only valid till the end of June 2024.
Jay Shah has confirmed that Dravid can apply for the role if he wants to but there will be no automatic extension like before.
“Rahul’s tenure is only up to June. So if he wants to apply, he is free to do so,” the BCCI secretary told Cricbuzz and also refused to rule out the possibility of hiring a foreign coach.
“We cannot determine whether the new coach will be Indian or foreign. It will be up to the CAC, and we are a global body,” the BCCI official said.
Shah all but ruled out the possibility of hiring different coaches for different formats, like some of the other international boards.
“That decision will also be made by the CAC. There are many all-format players, like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Rishabh Pant, among others. Moreover, there is no precedent for such a situation in India.”
Shah was also asked about the Impact Player rule which has received plenty of criticism amid from active international stars, including India captain Rohit Sharma. Shah said that he will discuss the matter with the stakeholders and decide if the rule needs to be persisted with.
“Impact player was a test case. Two new Indian players are getting a chance in the IPL,” he stressed on being told that the rule hampers the development of all-rounders. “We will discuss with the stakeholders – franchises and broadcasters – before deciding on the continuation of the Impact Player. It’s not permanent, but no one has provided feedback against the rule.”
