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Even as reports emerged during the Champions Trophy that skipper Kohli was "adamant" about a change in the helm, a section of influential BCCI officials wanted the matter to be deferred till the end of the West Indies tour
Anil Kumble stayed back in England even as the Virat Kohli-led Team India left for the West Indies tour, raising questions yet again on his future as the head coach. It remains unclear whether Kumble will join the team after the ICC annual conference on June 22. The official reason given by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officials is that Kumble, who is also the chairman of the ICC cricket committee, has to take part in a very significant meeting between ICC chief executives.
"As chairman of the cricket committee, he is an important member of the Chief Executive Committee (CEC) and has hence stayed back," said a BCCI office bearer. When asked whether the selection process will continue to be deferred till the end of the West Indies tour, the official replied in the affirmative.
India is touring West Indies for a five-match ODI series and one Twenty20 match. The series starts from June 23 and ends on July 9. It remains unclear whether Kumble will join the team after the ICC annual conference on June 22.
Kumble, who had been appointed coach of Team India in 2016, had reapplied after his contract ended on June 20.
Even as reports emerged during the Champions Trophy that skipper Kohli was "adamant" about a change in the helm, a section of influential BCCI officials wanted the matter to be deferred till the end of the West Indies tour. There is another section within BCCI which wants Kumble out, eventhough the latter had produced outstanding results.
The cricket advisory committee, consisting of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman, who were assigned the task of selecting the coach, are in a bind. Their attempts to break the ice between Kohli and Kumble have not borne much fruit.
