The Indian men’s cricket team is set to get a new head coach, with incumbent Rahul Dravid having informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about his decision to step down at the end of India’s T20 World Cup campaign in June.
Dravid is understood to have informed the BCCI hierarchy about his decision to spend time with the family even before the IPL began in March. On Monday night, the BCCI officially invited applications for the head coach’s post with May 27 set as the deadline.
Last week, BCCI secretary Jay Shah, while stating that the applications for the head coach will be invited soon, had stressed Dravid “will have to re-apply” if he wants an extension. The statement came as a surprise to many in the know.
The Hindu understands that Dravid — who agreed for an extension after his contract expired at the end of the 2023 World Cup — had clarified well in advance about seeking no further extension due to personal reasons. In fact, a group of seniors in the team had requested him to consider being at the helm of the Test team at least for a year, but Dravid had made up his mind.
Had Dravid agreed, the BCCI may have considered having different coaches for limited-over and Test match set-ups. However, as stated by Shah last week, there will only be one head coach across formats and his appointment will be till the end of 2027.
Contrary to speculation and expectation, V.V.S. Laxman, the head at the National Cricket Academy, too is unlikely to enter the fray.
It may lead to the BCCI being forced to look for an overseas coach in consultation with the senior players. Feelers have been sent to a couple of IPL franchise head coaches, who have been a part of the T20 league for quite some time. So far, none of them have expressed willingness to apply for the post.
