Ravi Shastri reacts on Sourav Ganguly’s BCCI appointment for the first time

Mumbai: BCCI President Sourav Ganguly and Team India head coach, Ravi Shastri, have had a few differences in the past. The most notable incident happened in 2016 when Anil Kumble was elected Team India head coach, beating Ravi Shastri, who had also applied for the position.

Shastri had blamed Ganguly for his snub as the latter was a member of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) back then. A year later, in 2017, Ganguly was on the same panel that appointed Ravi Shastri in the coaching role.

But, it seems that all is well now as both of them have buried the hatchet. After his appointment as BCCI president, Ganguly had said that there was no chance that Ravi Shastri could lose his job as Team India head coach as the team had done very well under him.

Ravi Shastri, too, seemed to return the favour by welcoming the decision of appointing Ganguly as BCCI president. Speaking to The Times of India, Shastri said, “My heartiest congratulations to Sourav for taking over as the BCCI president. His appointment is an indication that Indian cricket is moving in the right direction.”

He added, “He’s always been a natural leader. When someone like him -- who already dipped his feet into cricket administration four or five years ago -- takes over as president of the BCCI, it’s a win-win for Indian cricket. These are difficult times for the Board and there’s a lot of work to do to bring BCCI back on the path of glory. I wish him all the best in his stint.”

Ravi Shastri was also in agreement with Ganguly’s view on BCCI getting back whatever dues ICC owed them. Ganguly had said that BCCI is supposed to receive USD 372 million dollars within a period of five years.

To this, Ravi Shastri opined, “I’ve always believed you need to bring something to the table to take something away from the table and in that, we know what India’s contribution is. Now, the question we should be asking ourselves is ‘Is India getting a fair return for what it brings to the table?’ I don’t think so, and in that, I guess lies the answer. I’m pretty confident our administration is now in capable hands and they know what to do.”

He added, “The NCA is the most important institution in BCCI and you need it to be in the best possible functioning mode at all times. It is the ultimate preparatory school. With someone like Rahul Dravid at the helm there, I expect no less. We’ve been communicating a lot and I’m sure good things are waiting to happen. With Sourav as president and Rahul (Dravid) at NCA, what better combination can Indian cricket ask for?”