Ravi Shastri wants to take monopoly of decision-making process, not in favour of Big Three: report
More than Tendulkar and Laxman, it is Ganguly that Shastri would like to avoid
Mumbai/Chennai: Indian cricket Team Director Ravi Shastri retained his position for the tour of Bangladesh and if reports are to be believed, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have appointed him for the next two years. Now if officials in the governing body have revealed that there still are a couple of terms and conditions that are yet to be agreed upon.
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According a report in ‘The New Indian Express’, Shastri made it absolutely clear to the Board at the start itself before heading to Bangladesh, that he should be in the thick scheme of things for a longer duration. It’s learnt that he would not want anyone in the decision-making process, quite surprisingly, not even the newly constituted advisory panel consisting – Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman.
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The Board was left with no option; other than Shastri would could replace Duncan Fletcher, whose term expired after the conclusion of the ICC Cricket World Cup.
Shastri also went on to inform the BCCI that he would not want the trio to interfere with his functioning, added the report. “Shastri felt that if he were given a two-year contract, he would like to run the team his way and obviously wouldn’t want someone else interfering in policy decisions,” an official was quoted as saying to the daily.
“Shastri was very particular on having complete freedom and didn’t want any Board matters to affect his role,” added the official.
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But delving further, more than Tendulkar and Laxman, it is Ganguly that he would like to avoid. “The trio has been appointed to look into the affairs of Indian cricket. Players can approach them directly and seek their help,” said the official.
The BCCI is left in a Catch-22 situation. With the fate of Shastri left to be decided after the tour of Bangladesh ends, and with the Board all set to offer to positions before the team sets off for Zimbabwe next month, chances are that Shastri might get his way, specially when he has the backing of Test skipper Virat Kohli and prominent personalities in the fraternity.