India Under-19 and ‘A’ team coach Rahul Dravid’s contract has been renewed for two years, reported The Indian Express. The decision to renew the contract was taken by the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s Cricket Advisory Committee, comprising Dravid’s former teammates Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman. The terms and conditions of the contract are yet to be finalised, the report added.
This means that Dravid will not have to go through an interview process again, like senior national coach Anil Kumble, who has to contest again with other applicants. Kumble’s one-year contract ended on Sunday after the conclusion of the Champions Trophy.
There is a clause in Dravid’s existing contract that allowed the BCCI to extend it without initiating a new interview process, a board official told the daily. The BCCI’s Committee of Administrators wanted to initiate a new interview process like in the case of Kumble, before it was informed of this clause.
“In Dravid’s contract, there is a line which states the BCCI can give extension to him, whereas in Kumble’s contract there is no clause of extension,” the official was quoted as saying. “That is why [the] process [to call new applicants] was followed in Kumble’s case.”
Dravid, therefore, looks set to carry on as India’s junior coach subject to agreeing to his remuneration. Dravid used to earn more than Rs 4 crore for a 10-month contractual period prior to this, the report said.
Dravid recently sought clarity about the nature of his contract, after former COA member Ramachandra Guha accused him of conflict of interest, considering his role as mentor of Indian Premier League franchise Delhi Daredevils. Dravid’s earlier 10-month contract allowed him to take on IPL duties during the two months of the T20 tournament. The COA had decided to make all contracts for India coaches to be of two-years length following Guha’s accusations.
Earlier this week, Dravid had also chosen to stay away from the selection process for the India U-19 squad for their upcoming tour of England considering his contract was about to end, the report said. India U-19 are scheduled to play two four-day matches and five one-day games against England U-19 in July.
