Sourav Ganguly ready to coach Team India

New Delhi: sourav_ganguly_drs300.jpgIt’s been nearly four years since Sourav Ganguly announced his international retirement. But that was no deterrent for his fans. Now the former India captain has given them something to look forward to as he has expressed his interest in the coaching job.

Speaking to a private news channel, Ganguly said: “Obviously, I have interest in coaching but only time will tell what can happen in future. If the BCCI feels that I can be a good coach to the team, I will be ready. I feel I can create a difference in terms of the ability of the players, their form and their development. That will be one way of my repaying the game.”

Ganguly, who is one of the most successful captains of India, made it clear that it is the captain who is the most important link in the team and he should be allowed to do whatever he feels. A coach’s role should be to help the skipper with his man-management skills.

“A captain has to take certain on-the-field decisions. When I was captain for five-six years there were many occasions when I had to reverse whatever we had decided in the team meetings according to situations. The coach is just there to help the captain and have the players ready for games, but the coach will always take a back seat as ultimately the players will go out and perform. Whosoever it can be, a Ganguly or a Rahul Dravid, may be a Sachin Tendulkar and a Duncan Fletcher, the coach will have to support the captain through his man management skills,” Ganguly said.

When asked if he was aiming to take up the job by the World Cup 2015, Ganguly said it must be Duncan Fletcher. “The World Cup is three years away and if the team does well in this season, obviously Duncan will be given an extended contract till the World Cup. I think we need to back Duncan as he needs good results. He has a young side under him and he would need to work hard for the team to win outside of the sub-continent. Before him, Gary Kirsten had a very important stint and the team played very well under him so I would really want Duncan to do well.”

Ganguly, who has always been a supporter of a foreign coach, however, said that it was time for an Indian to take up the coaching job in the Indian team. “When John Wright came in, the situation was different and the need was to have a foreign coach who could expose the players to modern fitness and training methods. Different captains and different coaches brought in that culture within the team where the players believed they could do well abroad. But the Indian cricket is well aware of the modern techniques now.”

While the southpaw is open to the coaching job, he is not keen on replacing K Srikkanth as the chairman of selectors.