After much speculation, Anil Kumble has been appointed as India’s head coach for a year, as the BCCI made the announcement on Thursday.
BCCI president Anurag Thakur made the announcement in Dharmashala at the first ever Annual Conclave.
“It’s a great honour and responsibility to be part of the Indian dressing room in a different role,” Anil Kumble told reporters after the announcement.
“I have always put my hand up for challenges,” he added saying that his family was supportive of his decision.
According to reports, two out of three in the BCCI’s cricket advisory committee comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman voted for Kumble and one voted for Ravi Shastri.
The decision is indeed not a surprise after the BCCI’s cricket advisory committee comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman had met on Wednesday to discuss and deliberate on the options after the choices had narrowed down to the former India test captain and Ravi Shastri.
There were media reports suggesting that the three-member star panel was bowled over by Kumble's presentation.
Kumble, Praveen Amre and Lalchand Rajput made their respective presentations to the advisory committee, which took their interviews at a Kolkata hotel on Tuesday. It was learnt that former India team director Ravi Shastri, who was the other high-profile candidate, was away and he was interviewed via video conference. Former BCCI secretary Sanjay Jagdale assisted the trio.
“Around 10 candidates gave their interviews today, we have made our choice and the name will be forwarded to the Secretary tonight itself. The interview process is now over. There will be no more interviews after this,” Ganguly told reporters on Tuesday.
After its advertisement for the coach’s post on its website, the BCCI had received 57 applications from both India and abroad, out of which 21 candidates were shortlisted last week.