There have been quite a few uncertainties regarding the Indian cricket team’s support staff. After a lot of reports and speculations, Gautam Gambhir was announced as the team coach, starting the IND vs SL series from July 27. Now the big question remains as to who will be the other set of coaches with the team. In the past, a lot of names were doing the rounds, but for now, Abhishek Nayar seems to have made the cut and is expected to travel to Sri Lanka as well.
Mind you, no formal announcement for Abhishek Nayar has been made till now, but as per a report in Cricbuzz, the former India international is all set for the assignment.
T Dilip Retained, Ryan ten Doeschate to Travel Too
The report further states, Team India’s fielding coach during Rahul Dravid’s tenure, T Dilip has been retained. The biggest surprise though is the inclusion of Ryan ten Doeschate as an assistant coach in the setup. In the meantime, while there’s possibility of bringing in South African Morne Morkel as the bowling coach, but there is no clarity on that so far.
It is interesting to note that Gambhir has closely worked with Nayar, Ten Doeschate and Morkel, at various times in his career. Nayar and Gambhir worked at KKR together, and so did Ten Doeschate, while Morkel and Gambhir worked together at LSG. Meanwhile, the Dutch coach is expected to join the team in Sri Lanka directly, since he is part of the MLC, and is in the support staff of LA Knight Riders.
Team India to Depart for IND vs SL on 22nd July
The Suryakumar Yadav-led team is expected to leave for Colombo on Monday, on a charter flight at 1 pm. Before the departure, the unveiling of Gambhir as the new head coach, is also on the cards. A press conference for the same is planned in Mumbai. BCCI secretary Jay Shah, would meet the team in Colombo itself.
