The coaching staff demands of the newly appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir have met with resistance from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), according to a report. The report mentions that five of Gambhir’s demands regarding the coaching staff have been rejected by the BCCI.

The report by a media house claims that Gambhir’s recommendations of bowling coach — Vinay Kumar, Laxmipathy Balaji, and Morne Morkel, and fielding coach — Ryan ten Doeschate and Jonty Rhodes, were rejected.

Meanwhile, the national selection committee and Gautam Gambhir held an hour-long virtual introductory meeting to lay down the vision the newly appointed head coach had for Team India, according to the reports. 

The squad for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka was the topic of discussion in the meeting which included members of Ajit Agarkar's selection committee, Gambhir, and BCCI secretary Jay Shah, according to a report by a cricket website.

With senior players in the likes of Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah expected to be rested, opportunities for players like Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, who did not make the squad for the T20 World Cup arises.

It was also reported that although captain Rohit Sharma is expected to miss the series, there is indication that he may make himself available for the series.

With vice-captain Hardik Pandya not available for selection in the ODI series KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav may be chosen to lead the side in the series. There is concern surrounding Pandya’s bid for captaincy due to his injury history.

The meeting also saw Gambhir, who attended the meeting from his home in New Delhi, lay down the basic idea of the type of players he wants in the squad with commitment being one of the most important factors, the report further said.

The India vs Sri Lanka white ball series begins on July 27 with Three One Day Internationals and three T20 International to take place.

(with inputs from a syndicated feed)

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