Bharat Arun joins TNPL franchise amidst reports of his appointment as Indian bowling coach

The three-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) appointed former Indian all-rounder Ravi Shastri as the head coach of the Indian cricket team for the second time on 11th July. Besides Shastri, they also appointed legendary batsman Rahul Dravid and former Indian pace spearhead Zaheer Khan as the batting and bowling consultants.

According to the reports, Shastri felt that he was deprived of his right of choosing assistants of his choice. He wanted Bharat Arun to be the bowling coach of the Indian team. The CAC also felt that they had been targetted unnecessarily and hence wrote a letter to the authorities. After a lot of drama, it was announced that BCCI will take horses-for-courses policy and Zaheer will not be working as the full-time bowling coach. He will rather work only when called upon to do so.

After this announcement, reports surfaced on media that Arun has been appointed as the new bowling coach of India. But the 54-year old has denied any such claims. He has joined the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) franchise VB Thiruvallur Veerans as head coach. Veerans will be mentored by legendary Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

According to the rules, if Arun is appointed as the bowling coach of India, he will have to quit his IPL and TNPL duties. When the Times of India asked him whether he has been appointed by the BCCI, he replied, “Not yet. As of now, I’ve to carry on normally, isn’t it? If I do get the India job, I’ll leave both the TNPL and the RCB (Royal Challengers Bangalore).

Scenario will be transparent on Tuesday

The current state of confusion will get over on Tuesday. At 2 pm on that day, Shastri will meet with  Committee of Administrators (CoA) member Diana Eduljee, BCCI acting president & secretary CK Khanna and Amitabh Chaudhary and CEO Rahul Johri at Mumbai. The fate of Dravid, Khan and Arun will be clear after the meeting.