The last time he took charge, Ravi Shastri gave the Indian team a new josh after the 2007 World Cup debacle. Can he do so this time as well?
Cracking the whip following India's disastrous performance in the Test series against England, the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Tuesday, August 19, virtually sidelined coach Duncan Fletcher by appointing former captain Ravi Shastri, left, below,, as the team director while giving bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding coach Trevor Penny a 'break' for the upcoming One-Day International series in England.
While Fletcher will continue as head coach of the team, the shake-up is clear indication that his wings will be clipped following Shastri's appointment as director for the five-match ODI series, beginning August 25.
This is not the first time that Shastri will be a part of India's team management.
In 2007, after the World Cup debacle in the West Indies, the former India all-rounder -- who captained India for only one Test against the West Indies, but is admired for his leadership skills -- was appointed manager for the tour of Bangladesh after coach Greg Chappell was sacked.
'In culmination of the discussions among all the office-bearers of the BCCI over the last couple of weeks, the BCCI has decided to avail the services of former India captain, Mr Ravi Shastri, to oversee and guide the Indian cricket team for the forthcoming one-day international matches against England,' read a statement from BCCI Secretary Sanjay Patel.
'Mr Duncan Fletcher will continue as Head Coach while Ravi Shastri will be the overall in charge of Cricket affairs of the Indian Team,' Patel added.
The support staff will have a more Indian look, with Kings XI Punjab Chief Coach Sanjay Bangar and India Under-19 Coach Bharath Arun named assistant coaches.
R Sridhar will take over as the fielding coach.
Shastri, 52, played 80 Tests and 150 ODIs for India between 1981 and 1992.
He is a part of the Governing Council of the Indian Premier League and also works as a television commentator.
India's humiliating 1-3 defeat in the Test series prompted many former cricketers to call for Fletcher's immediate ouster, saying he has not contributed anything to the team. They also questioned captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership abilities.
Under Fletcher, India has lost 13 Tests outside the sub-continent: seven in England, four in Australia, one each in New Zealand and South Africa.
Bangar, 41, played 12 Tests and 15 ODIs. He is considered to be one of the brightest young coaches in the country, having guided the unheralded Kings XI Punjab to its first-ever final in the IPL.
Having retired from active cricket only a year earlier, former Railways captain Bangar is seen as a future coach of the Indian team. Tamil Nadu's Bharath Arun opened the bowling with the legendary Kapil Dev in two Tests and four ODIs in the mid 1980s.
Arun, who will probably be the bowling coach, has headed the National Cricket Academy's bowling unit for close to seven years now and is best known for guiding the Unmukt Chand-led India Under-19 team to the World Cup triumph in Australia in 2012.
His record coaching senior teams at the domestic level is not too good though, as under him the Bengal team was relegated from the Ranji Trophy's Elite to Plate Group back in 2007-2008.
Former Hyderabad left-arm spinner Sridhar was the India Under-19 team's assistant coach during the World Cup in the UAE and was last month appointed coach of the Andhra team for the Ranji Trophy. He also served as the fielding coach for the Kings XI Punjab in this year's IPL.
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Photograph: BCCI
