Ex Indian all-rounder Abhishek Nayar and former Dutch international Ryan ten Doeschate are expected to become assistant coaches of the Indian team on its tour of Sri Lanka although the appointment for the new head coach Gautam Gambhir’s support staff is yet to be confirmed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The new head coach is Gambhir and not Rahul Dravid as reported in Cricbuzz.
According to a Cricbuzz report, T Dilip will continue as fielding coach.
As stated in the report, “Dilip has been known with great effective fielding drills and team bonding exercises which are crucial in such a highly competitive environment”. In their part, Abhishek Nayar and ten Doeschate will bring into play their vast experience. They were both previously associates to Gambhir when he was trainer at Kolkata Knight Riders last season during Indian Premier League matches.
The report further said that former South African fast bowler, Morne Morkel also remains a strong candidate for bowling coach after having worked with Gambhir at Lucknow Super Giants for two years.
Dilip and Abhishek Nayar will immediately join the squad while ten Doeschate’s arrival timing is still unknown. Currently, he is in United States serving as LA Knight Riders’ coaching staff under ongoing Major League Cricket (MLC) and may directly join Indian team in Colombo.
Discussions with BCCI about Morkel’s possible role as bowling coach have taken place but it is unclear when this would be actualized.
Indian team will leave Mumbai for Colombo through a charter flight on Monday 1 P.M. The BCCI would introduce Gambhir as new head coach before departing.
Reportedly there will be media briefing on July 22nd at five star hotel located in Andheri Mumbai whose attendees will include newly appointed T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav among others.
