Former Australian opener and current head coach of the Lucknow Super Giants, Justin Langer, has expressed curiosity about the Indian cricket team’s head coach role, which will be up for grabs after current coach Rahul Dravid’s tenure ends following the T20 World Cup. The BCCI invited applications for the position on Monday night, prompting Langer to express his interest.
“Well, I am curious,” Langer told TOI when asked whether he would apply for the post. “I’ve never ever thought about it. I have deep respect for any international coach because I understand the pressure, but coaching the Indian team would be an extraordinary role. From what I’ve seen with the amount of talent I’ve seen in this country, it would be fascinating,” he added.
Earlier, BCCI secretary Jay Shah had clarified that Dravid would have to apply and go through the selection process like all other applicants if he wished to continue as the head coach of the Indian team. However, that seems unlikely as Dravid was not keen on continuing when his contract ended after the ODI World Cup last year. He and his entire support staff were given an extension considering the T20 World Cup was barely seven-eight months away at that time.
Shah also hinted at the possibility of roping in a foreign coach, which would mark a departure from the recent trend of having former Indian cricketers as head coaches. The last foreign coach to grace Indian cricket was Duncan Fletcher, who stepped down in 2014. Since then, India has had three full-time head coaches – Anil Kumble, Ravi Shastri, and Rahul Dravid – all of whom were former India cricketers and big names.
It would be interesting to see whether the Cricket Advisory Committee, comprising Ashok Malhotra, Sulakshana Naik, and Jatin Paranjape, would consider going back to an overseas coach after more than a decade. If they do, Langer might just be the ideal candidate.
Langer has a legacy of 105 Tests, scoring 7696 runs at an average of 45. Moreover, he has successfully coached the Australian team for close to four years and was the protagonist in the revival of Australian cricket after the Sandpapergate in 2018. Under his tenure, Australia also won their maiden T20 World Cup title in 2021.
Langer also has the experience of coaching LSG, an IPL franchise, albeit with mixed results. LSG is still in the race to qualify for the playoffs, but questions have been asked about the team’s approach.
“When you’re a player, you have control. You take absolute responsibility for your performance. The only thing that’s out of your control is selection, or what the media writes or what people think of you. You focus only on watching the ball. If you make runs, the only currency of value is runs. If you make runs, you get selected. If you get selected, you get a contract,” Langer said about his debut season as LSG’s head coach.
