Mumbai: In spite of news reports emerging that the new head coach of the Indian team will be announced today, former captain and CAC member Saurav Ganguly maintained that skipper Virat Kohli will be consulted over the selection but was not the main person to decide on the issue.
“We respect his (Virat’s) decision. At the end of the day it is his team, he is going to lead the team. He (Virat) will be consulted and no, he will not be the main person and he doesn’t want to be the main person,” Ganguly told reporters on the sidelines of a promotional event here. Ganguly made his foray in start-ups by investing in Mumbai-based entertainment company Flickstree.
“When you speak to Virat Kohli, he is aware. He doesn’t want to be the main person. No, we can get hold of him (talk to him), that’s the way I look at it. There are people who think differently,” the Cricket Association of Bengal president said.
Suspense continued over India’s next coach with the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) yesterday deciding to put the appointment on hold while sending a pointed message to skipper Kohli to understand “how coaches operate”.
“Virat will need to understand how coaches operate. At the same time, you have to give credit to Virat that he has stayed out of the coach selection process. We will have a detailed chat with him once he is back from the West Indies,” Ganguly, flanked by committee member VVS Laxman and joint secretary Amitabh Choudhary, told a press conference last evening.
Asked today whether it was a message from the CAC to Virat, Ganguly said, “There is no message. Its just to bring him in confidence. I respect him immensely. He is a terrific player for India and he is the captain of India. You have to respect the captain of India and I respect him.”
Meanwhile news reports said today that the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators, headed by Vinod Rai, has asked the BCCI to announce the name of the coach by this evening.
Asked about it, Ganguly said, “We will speak to him (Rai), I will speak to him. He is a very respected man,” Ganguly said.
“This afternoon I was suppossed to go to Delhi, but that has been cancelled. We will speak to him (Vinod Rai) because all that was announced yesterday was with everyone’s permission and everybody was on board.”
“He (Rai) has got the right (to ask us). The reason what we wanted to (hold back) was because Virat is on a holiday to America, and you don’t want to disturb him in the break. If he is available on the phone, we will talk to him.”
Pressed further about the date of appointment of the new coach the ex-India skipper said, “very soon”. (PTI)
