CHENNAI: A sensible decision has finally been taken regarding Team India’s assistant coaches. But should chief coach Ravi Shastri have had it all his way? We’ll see.
1. Choosing assistant coaches is not Sachin et al’s job
First, let's look at the earlier decision taken by the Cricket Advisory Committee, or in other words M/s Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V V S Laxman. Come to think of it, selecting Ravi Shastri’s assistants was not their job. Their job ends with selecting him, and that’s that.
Taking a call on Shastri’s deputies is the BCCI's responsibility, which in the present circumstances, devolves on the CoA (Court-appointed Administrators), because they are supposed to oversee matters related to financial contracts.
2. Dravid, Zaheer have conflicts of interest
Second, neither Rahul Dravid nor Zaheer Khan can get involved with the senior India team at the moment because that would amount to conflict of interest. Dravid recently signed a two-year contract as chief coach of India A and under-19 teams, while Zaheer is contracted to the IPL franchise Delhi Daredevils. Without clarifying what happens to those roles and saying that they will be consultants on specific overseas tours was an impractical call in the first place. Bharathi Arun too has an IPL contract with Royal Challengers Bangalore but BCCI has announced that he will end before accepting the new offer.
3. Bharathi Arun has proved himself
Now, let’s come to the question of Ravi Shastri being allowed to choose Arun as bowling coach. Should he have had his way?
If it's just a question whether Arun has the ability to deliver, then that question has already been answered. The performance of bowlers during Arun's previous involvement (2014-16) with the team in this capacity was good.
What exactly was his contribution to the improvement of Ishant Sharma, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav is for experts to say, but it's a fact that these bowlers were more consistent during Arun’s time as bowling coach. It looked as if they were following a plan.
On the domestic circuit, Arun is rated well as a coach with valuable technical inputs. So Arun's credentials shouldn't be doubted. That he didn't have a great international career takes nothing away from what he is capable of as a coach.
4. A coach chooses his assistants. Period.
So, should the chief coach have a say in choosing the bowling coach? After all that has happened over the selection of chief coach, every time the Indian team doesn't do well, fingers will be raised at Shastri. If he is to be blamed for defeat, he should have a say in choosing his assistants.
During his time as India coach, Greg Chappell asked for and got Ian Frazer as assistant. After Chappell, Gary Kirsten brought in Paddy Upton.
A chief coach selecting his men is a practice in sports. By insisting on that principle, Shastri is not doing anything new or outlandish.