Ravi Shastri named Team India's head coach, Zaheer Khan new bowling coach

NEW DELHI: The BCCI on Tuesday named Ravi Shastri as the new chief coach of the Indian cricket team with former fast bowling great Zaheer Khan being appointed the bowling coach for a period of two years. "On Cricket Advisory Committee's recommendation, we have decided to appoint Ravi Shastri as the chief coach while Zaheer Khan will be appointed bowling coach for a period of two years," BCCI acting president CK Khanna confirmed. Rahul Dravid has been appointed batting consultant for specific overseas tours. It will be third stint with the national team for 55- year-old Shastri, who was earlier a Cricket Manager during 2007 tour of Bangladesh and then Team Director from 2014 August to 2016 June during which India won Test overseas series versus Sri Lanka, reached the semi-finals of 2015 World Cup and World T20 semi-finals in 2016. It was learnt that it was a fight between Shastri and Virender Sehwag but it was skipper Virat Kohli's strong recommendation about Shastri's earlier tenure that swung the deal in favour of BCCI's 'Man of All Seasons'. Zaheer Khan, who last played international cricket in 2014, is considered to be one of finest exponents of swing bowling India has ever produced. According to sources, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been asked by the COA to appoint the coach by Tuesday, after the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman deferred the announcement after interviewing five candidates on Monday. Lalchand Rajput, Virender Sehwag, Richard Pybus, Ravi Shastri and Tom Moody were the candidates who were interviewed on Monday by the three-member CAC. "What we have decided is we will hold on for the time being for the announcement of the coach. We need a few more days and talk to a few more people, especially the captain and then make an announcement because we feel that there is no hurry at the moment," Ganguly told the media after the interviews. The COA comprises Vinod Rai as chairman, and Vikram Limaye and Diana Edulji as the other members. Shastri was considered to be one of the favourites for the job since he enjoys good relations with Kohli. The former India all-rounder had delivered results during his previous stint as Director with the Indian team, a factor which may also work in his favour. The Indian team, especially skipper Virat Kohli, has been at the centre of a controversy after leg-spin legend Anil Kumble resigned as coach following a humiliating 180-run loss to Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy final on June 18. Kumble had hinted at differences with Kohli in his resignation letter to the BCCI. There have also been reports that several players were unhappy with Kumble's strict disciplinarian approach. Some players were also reportedly unhappy after Kumble handed a harsh dressing down to the team following the defeat in the Champions Trophy final.