Ravi Shastri, Virender Sehwag among top contenders for team India head coach

The race for the next head coach of the Indian cricket team has intensified. As it is a known fact by now, the team is set to get the new coach before they leave for the Sri Lanka tour this month. The recent developments suggest that the names of Ravi Shastri, Virender Sehwag, and Tom Moody have been shortlisted for the coveted post. Reportedly, the Chief Advisory Committee (CAC) has shortened the list of the contenders and have narrowed down to these three gentlemen for the post.

The CAC has been appointed by the BCCI to appoint the next coach of the Indian team. Former cricketers Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, and VVS Laxman are the members of the CAC. As per the quotes in Deccan Chronicle, one of the top BCCI officials have confirmed the same news. “The new coach is likely to be any of these three – Ravi Shastri, Virender Sehwag and Tom Moody,” he said.

The rush to appoint the new head coach started in mid June after the conclusion of the ICC Champions Trophy. Anil Kumble unceremoniously and abruptly decide to step down from the position of the head coach. He cited the reasons of the lack of rapport between him and skipper Virat Kohli as the prime reason for his departure. After that, the CAC has been interviewing the candidates for the post of the next head coach.

Shastri the top preference?

Many reports suggested that Ravi Shastri would be the next coach. One of the prime reasons for this being Kohli’s good rapport with the former Indian team manager. Shastri was with the Indian team during the tour down under in the 2015-16 season and the ICC World T20. Also, in the race is Virender Sehwag. Sehwag is currently the Director of Cricket Operations of the Kings XI Punjab franchise in the Indian Premier League.

The third person in the race is former Australian cricketer Tom Moody. Moody has immense experience in coaching and has been serving in the same capacity for international sides, club teams, and the franchises across the globe. His most recent achievement was with the Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2016 where the team finished as the eventual champions.