Abhishek Nayar & T Dilip Removed From India Coaching Staff

The Men In Blue are set to travel with a limited support staff for their upcoming test tour of England. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to not renew the contracts of Assistant Coach Abhishek Nayar, Fielding Coach T Dilip & Strength & Conditioning Coach Soham Desai.

There are no new appointments expected except Adrian Le Roux. The South African is set to be the new Strength & Conditioning Coach for Team India, replacing Soham Desai. The remaining contingent comprises Head Coach Gautam Gambhir, batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, and Assistant Coach Ryan Ten Doeschate, who is also set to be the fielding coach & bowling coach Morne Morkel have all retained their respective positions.

Major Overhaul In Team India

The changes are more or less on the expected lines, with the reports emerging that the positions of two coaches are in danger due to Gautam Gambhir's growing influence in the team. Gambhir worked in alliance with both Nayar & Dilip; however, it was after the first two tests in Australia that things reportedly went downhill.

One of the first decisions he took was to onboard Kotak as the batting coach, thus limiting the role of Abhishek Nayar. This decision could've been taken in the backdrop of India's poor batting displays in Australia. Ironically, Nayar was given a role in the Indian team on the recommendation of Gambhir, as both worked together in the KKR setup in the IPL.

Nayar was backed by skipper Rohit Sharma, the same goes with T Dilip, who survived the major overhaul of Team India's coaching staff after Rahul Dravid (Head Coach), Vikram Rathour (Batting Coach) & Paras Mhambrey (Bowling Coach) contracts came to an end.

Dilip continued under Gambhir, who brought in ten Doeschate as a fielding coach. The former Netherlands captain had been working in the Knight Riders set-up in that position.

As for Le Roux, who has been with the Punjab Kings setup for about seven years, it will be a homecoming as he had worked with the Indian team in the past. For the record, the PBKS management maintains that he has not yet informed them about the Indian team offer.

After the conclusion of the IPL, Team India is all set to embark on a 5-match test tour of England, starting their fourth cycle of the World Test Championship. The test tour begins on June 16th in Headingley, Leeds, while Birmingham(July 2nd), Lord's(July 10), Manchester(July 23), & Kia Oval(July 31) are set to host the remaining four matches.