Legendary Australian cricketer Ricky Ponting has confirmed that he was recently approached by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take up the position of head coach for the Indian national team. This development comes as the BCCI looks to find a replacement for current coach Rahul Dravid, whose contract is set to expire after the T20 World Cup 2024.
BCCI’s search for a new coach
Since the BCCI announced the vacancy on May 13, there has been widespread speculation about various international cricketers being considered for the role, with Ponting’s name prominently mentioned. The former Australian captain acknowledged that he had been in discussions with BCCI officials regarding the coaching position.
Ricky Ponting’s coaching experience
Ponting has previously held coaching roles, including serving as Australia’s assistant coach in 2019 and the interim T20I coach. Despite his extensive experience, he has yet to commit to a full-time national team coaching role. In the Indian Premier League (IPL), Ponting has been the head coach of the Delhi Capitals (DC) since 2018. In a statement to the ICC, Ponting addressed the reports and confirmed the informal talks that took place during the IPL.
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“I’ve seen a lot of reports about it. Normally these things pop up on social media before you even know about them, but there were a few little one-on-one conversations during the IPL, just to get a level of interest from me as to whether I would do it,” said Ponting.
Ponting reveals the reason
Despite his interest in coaching a national team, the Tasmanian emphasized the challenges such a role would bring to his personal life. He expressed a desire to maintain a balance that allows him to spend time with his family and manage his other commitments.
“I’d love to be a senior coach of a national team, but with the other things that I have in my life and wanting to have a bit of time at home. Everyone knows if you take a job working with the Indian team you can’t be involved in an IPL team, so it would take that out of it as well. Also, a national head coach is a 10 or 11-month of the year job, and as much as I’d like to do it, it just doesn’t fit into my lifestyle right now and the things that I really enjoy doing,” added the 49-year-old.
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