Don’t want to comment on Bharat Arun’s appointment as bowling coach: Sourav Ganguly

Bharath Arun's appointment came after Ravi Shastri showed inclination towards having him on board

By: Karan Nanda |
July 19, 2017 11:21 am

Soon after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) appointed Bharath Arun as India’s bowling coach till the 2019 ICC World Cup, former India captain and part of the three-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) Sourav Ganguly on July 18 refused to comment on his appointment over Zaheer Khan. Bharath Arun’s appointment came after Ravi Shastri showed inclination towards having him on board. Sourav Ganguly was in favour of Zaheer Khan to be Team India’s bowling coach. Ganguly, recommended a 150-day tenure per year for India’s World Cup winning pacer Zaheer Khan as bowling consultant.

“Enough has been said about the matter. I don’t want to comment on this anymore,” Ganguly told reporters in Kolkata. “(We recommended) 150 days a year,” Ganguly had said a few days back.

Batting great Rahul Dravid’s name was also included as overseas batting consultant.

But on Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary said that they haven’t yet arrived at any decision on the duo.

India’s new coach Ravi Shastri will be at the helm of affairs when India tour Sri Lanka starting July 26. Batting coach Sanjay Bangar was elevated as the assistant coach while R.Sridhar was retained as the fielding coach of the national team.

The BCCI on July 11 appointed former Indian captain Ravi Shastri as team India’s new head coach after Anil Kumble resgined from the post following the rift with skipper Virat Kohli. Anil Kumble resigned a day after India lost to Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 final held in England.

Anil Kumble took to his official Facebook handle to share a post. In his post he wrote: “…I was informed for the first time yesterday by the BCCI that the captain had reservations with my ‘style’ and about my continuing as the head coach. I was surprised since I have always respected the role boundaries between captain and coach. Though the BCCI attempted to resolve the misunderstandings between the captain and me, it was apparent that the partnership was untenable, and I therefore believe it is best for me to move on.”

Team India will next tour Sri Lanka. The Virat Kohli-led side is set to play three Test matches, five One-Day Internationals (ODI) and a one-off Twenty20 International during the series.