Ravi Shastri says he applied for the post of head coach ‘Long Back’

After Anil Kumble quit as the head coach of Indian Cricket Team, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) extended the date for application for the coveted post to July 9, after which former Team India director Ravi Shastri also decided to throw in his hat for the post. However, reports suggested that Shastri has applied for the post on Monday, which he says is false. The 55-years old said that he didn’t apply yesterday but in fact did so a long back.

Amidst other popular names like Tom Moody and Virender Sehwag, Shastri is now the frontrunner in the race because he has the backing of the Indian captain Virat Kohli, as well of some of the BCCI officials. When a media website contacted Shastri to ask when he applied for the post, his reply was ‘long back’, which means he applied soon after the application deadline was extended.

Apparently, Shastri had applied for the same post last year as well but Kumble was given precedence over him. This had also led to a verbal rift between Shastri and former team India captain Sourav Ganguly, who also is one of the three members of the CAC – Cricket Advisory Committee which will elect the new head coach.

Last year, Shastri had pointed out that it was Ganguly who played a mind game in his non-selection as the head coach. However, Ganguly retaliated by saying that for a post as coveted as this one, Shastri should have given the interview to CAC in person and not over Skype, which he did because he was holidaying with his family in Bangkok.

New coach to be chosen before Sri Lanka tour 

The new head coach will be chosen before the tour to Sri Lanka later this year. But as aforementioned, Shastri is likely to come out as the winner solely because of the backing he has been getting by most men who matter.