Kumble given choice to continue till WI series

Birmingham: The speculation over the next Indian coach has for the time being ended with Vinod Rai, the Chief of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), announcing that Anil Kumble will remain as the coach till the end of the oncoming West Indies tour.

Some members of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) were not keen on making the next coach’s announcement in a hurry and had prefer to start the interview process only after the special general meeting on June 26. It is understood that BCCI’s acting president C.K. Khanna has even sent out an email to this effect, but the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) made up of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman, who are all here, would reportedly like to sort this matter at the earliest and have already had an informal meeting on June 8.

The trio would like Kumble to continue as coach till 2019 World Cup, but that could irk captain Virat Kohli and many players. The decision to retain Kumble, provided he agrees, shows inclination of the advisors to not give in to the demands of the players.

Kohli, in a press conference, had remarked that there were no differences with Kumble and that all the stories doing the rounds were rumours. However, it was clear for everyone in the media that Kohli’s statement was far from the truth. Rai has also made it clear that it is left to Kumble to accept whether he will be ready to remain as coach till end of the West Indies tour.

In another development, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Laxman have decided to meet Kohli and Kumble together and sort out their misunderstandings.

If CoA again appoints Kumble, the players and Kohli will have to accept Kumble’s approach to coaching. Kumble, on the other hand, may not want to change his coaching style, which allegedly is ‘tiring’ out the players.

The reason behind the CAC not wanting to replace Kumble in a hurry is that even if a new coach is appointed, there are chances that the players may complain about the new coach’s style of functioning as well. Virender Sehwag, who has applied for the coach’s post, is very much his own man and can also be quite a taskmaster.

The BCCI is keen on sorting out the differences, if any, between Kumble and Kohli since the current Indian team seems to have forged a good combination and most players are good enough to continue till the 2019 World Cup. The CAC is also looking at retaining the coach till the 2019 World Cup, and hence would like the players and coach to be on the same page.