Having masterminded an impressive campaign ending in IPL glory, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir looks set to take over as the next Indian cricket team head coach barring an official announcement.
Under Gambhir, KKR played brilliantly throughout the IPL campaign, finishing on top of the points table and going on to win it defeating Hyderabad comprehensively in the final recently. In fact, his IPL track record is really good having overseen Lucknow Super Giants' consecutive playoff-reaching seasons as a mentor before taking over at KKR.
The deadline for the submission of application for the position of Indian cricket team head coach officially ended on Monday.
A Cricbuzz report highlighted the details of the deal and the activities going on behind the scenes. According to the report, which cited a "very high-profile owner of an IPL franchise, who is very close to the BCCI top brass" as saying that the former Indian opener's appointment as the head coach of the Indian cricket team is a "done deal and the announcement will come soon".
The report further quoted a "high profile commentator" as saying that there are serious efforts underway to ensure the KKR mentor takes over from Rahul Dravid.
However, as there has been no official announcement in this regard yet, it points towards the fact that negotiations are still underway on several fronts "between the two parties and, perhaps, with some others too", the report claimed.
Last week, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah dismissed claims that the board had approached any former Australian cricketer for the top job hinting that Rahul Dravid's successor could be an Indian as he said that the candidate should have a "deep understanding" of the structure of the game in the country.
Shah said in a statement, "Neither I nor the BCCI have approached any former Australian cricketer with a coaching offer. The reports circulating in certain media sections are completely incorrect."
"Finding the right coach for our national team is a meticulous and thorough process. We are focused on identifying individuals who possess a deep understanding of the Indian cricket structure and have risen through the ranks," he added.
