Incumbent Ravi Shastri leads the shortlist of candidates to be interviewed by Cricket Advisory Committee for the position of India’s next head coach, according to multiple reports.
Sportstar reported on Monday that the six short-listed candidates for head coach position are Mike Hesson, Tom Moody, Robin Singh, Lalchand Rajput, Phil Simmons and, of course, Shastri.
Current coach Shastri got automatic entry for the selection process and is considered favourite to retain the position.
BCCI had invited applications for positions of head coach, batting coach, bowling coach and fielding coach and had set July 30 as the deadline. The application deadline ended on Tuesday and the next India head coach will be picked based only on the collective opinion of the three-member Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Kapil Dev, Shantha Rangaswamy and Anshuman Gaekwad.
However, the Indian board may need some time to shortlist the names on the final list given the number of applicants. Many international applications were sent by agents of the applicant, the report further added.
While Shastri has already got a 45-day extension along with other members of the support staff till India’s upcoming tour of the West Indies, he has been publicly backed by captain Virat Kohli to continue his stint.
Even CAC member Gaekwad had said that Shastri was likely to get a fresh contract. The former India player was picked as coach after Anil Kumble had resigned in 2017.
“The board have finalised a list of six names based on their experience and qualifications for the post. All the six interviews will be held in Mumbai with different time slots for all the six candidates. The interviews will begin in morning and will go on till 5:30pm in the evening on August 16,” a senior BCCI official is quoted as saying by CricketNext.
The Sportstar report added that the MSK Prasad-led selection committee could also be involved in the interview process, to look at candidates who have applied for the other positions apart from head coach.