New Captain-Coach: The Indian board is reportedly “seriously considering” appointing a separate coach for India’s T20 set up. This is according to information from the BCCI Headquarters in Mumbai. The new coaching staff for the Indian T20 Team might be revealed as early as January. Accordingly, India will play a T20 series against Sri Lanka in January with a new captain and coach.
Information So far on New Captain-Coach for T20Is
According to reports, before the series against Sri Lanka, Hardik Pandya would be formally named as India’s new T20 captain. Now, a senior BCCI official has acknowledged that the organization is also interested in hiring a new coach for the Indian T20 team.
Rahul Dravid and the incoming coach will probably collaborate. While considering a distinct coaching setup for T20, Dravid will primarily concentrate on the ODI and Test Teams.
The source said, “We are seriously mulling on it. More than it being Rahul Dravid or anyone’s ability, it is a question of managing tight schedules & having specialize skills on board. T20 now is like a separate sport, tough calendar & regular events. We also need to imbibe change. Yes, I can confirm – India soon will have new T20 Coaching Set Up.”
Who Can be the New Coach?
When asked about the probability of which candidate can be the first choice for New Coach, the source said. “We are not sure by when, but we are certain about India needs fresh approach to T20 SET-UP. We will have the announcement of the New Captain before January. And new coach can follow, but as I said nothing is final”
Former Players Suggest Separate Coach for T20Is
The debate has been on since India’s exit from the World Cup in the semi-finals. India lost to England by an embarrassing margin of 10 wickets. Following that, the team faced immense backlash.
Ravi Shastri and Habhajan Singh both had the same opinion about having a separate coach for the short format.
Harbhajan recently told PTI, that, “Someone who has played the game more recently is better suited for the coaching job in T20s. I am not saying you remove Rahul from T20. Ashish and Rahul can work together to build this team for the 2024 World Cup,”.
“I think for T20 cricket, there’s no harm in having a new captain, new coach because the volume of cricket is such that for one person to play or manage all three formats of the game is never going to be easy,” said Shastri during a press conference,
What’s Ahead for India
In January, India will meet Sri Lanka in a three-match T20 series. Most senior players including Virat, Rohit, Karthik, Ashwin won’t be part of the Indian team for the Series. KL Rahul, India’s vice captain, will reportedly miss the series because he is getting married. Hardik Pandya will lead the side,
