Sanjay Bangar to be replaced by Vikram Rathour as India batting coach
Chief selector MSK Prasad has recommended the name of former India opener Vikram Rathour to become the next batting coach of Team India. Rathour has pipped current incumbent Sanjay Bangar who finished second and Englishman Mark Ramprakash who finished third in the race. Prasad’s recommendations also mean that bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar will retain their respective positions. The recommended candidates will now have a meeting with the BCCI executives, after which, they will be handed two-year contracts till 2021. The candidates will be a part of Ravi Shastri’s coaching staff who himself was handed a two-year extension recently.
BCCI CEO Mr Rahul Johri explains the process ahead for the appointment of #TeamIndia Support Staff. pic.twitter.com/DmoFkmYjRs
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 22, 2019
Formerly a national selector
Rathour previously served as a senior national selector under Sandeep Patil’s chairmanship till 2016. He played 6 Test matches and 7 ODIs for India while being a key player in the Punjab setup. He had previously applied for the positions of the NCA batting consultant and U-19 batting coach. His application though was put on hold as his brother-in-law Ashish Kapoor is the chairman of U-19 selectors.
On choosing Rathour, BCCI CEO Rahul Johri said:
“Vikram Rathour has got enough experience and we are convinced with his skill sets (as a coach). We will ask him to declare if he has any conflict. The team management had their own views but looking ahead, we felt there should be some freshness in the support staff.”
In the race for the position for the bowling coach Paras Mhambrey and Venkatesh Prasad finished second and third respectively. Abhay Sharma and T Dilip finished second and third in the recommendations forwarded by Prasad for the position of fielding coach. South African legend Jonty Rhodes who had also applied for the position of fielding coach was surprisingly not considered.
MSK Prasad stated that the candidates who finished second and third might be considered for NCA and India A roles:
“While the first candidate will be preferred for the role, the second and third-ranked candidates could be used for NCA and India A roles. We will recommend it to Rahul Dravid, the Director of Cricket at the NCA.”
Prasad has also recommended the names of Nitin Patel and Girish Dongre. They will take over the positions of physiotherapist and administrative manager respectively.
