Ind vs Eng: Fletcher sidelined, Shastri appointed Team Director for ODI series

New Delhi Cracking the whip following Indias shambolic Test series against England the BCCI today virtually sidelined coach Duncan Fletcher by appointing former captain Ravi Shastri as the Team Director while giving a break to bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding coach Trevor Penny for the upcoming oneday seriesUnder pressure to act after Indias disastrous performance in the Test series the BCCI also appointed former players Sanjay Bangar and Bharat Arun as assistant coaches and R Sridhar as the fielding coach as it revamped the team managementRavi Shastri Pic Bipin KokateWhile Fletcher will continue as the head coach of the team the shakeup is a clear indication that his wings will be clipped with Shastri taking over as the Director for the oneday series beginning from August 25 This is not the first time that Shastri has been appointed as a part of Damage Control exercise In 2007 after the World Cup debacle in the West Indies the former India allrounder was appointed as a Cricket Manager for the tour of Bangladesh after Greg Chappell was sackedIn culmination of the discussions among all the officebearers of the BCCI over the last couple of weeks the BCCI has decided to avail the services of former India captain Mr Ravi Shastri to oversee and guide the Indian cricket team for the forthcoming oneday international matches against England a press release issued by the BCCI said Mr Duncan Fletcher will continue as Head Coach while Ravi Shastri will be the overall incharge of Cricket affairs of the Indian TeamThe support staff will have a more Indian look with Kings XI Punjab chief coach Sanjay Bangar India U19 coach Bharath Arun and colts fielding coach M V Sridhar being roped in place of Dawes and Penney In their continuing efforts to reenergise the support to the team the BCCI has given a break to the bowling coach Mr Joe Dawes and the fielding coach Trevor Penney for the oneday series and appointed Sanjay Bangar former Indian allrounder and former India fast bowler Bharath Arun as the Asst coaches of the team R Sridhar will join the support team as the fielding coach for the oneday series 52yearold Shastri has played 80 Tests and 150 ODIs for India scoring 3830 and 3108 runs respectively He also has 151 Test and 129 ODI wicketsIndias humiliating 13 defeat in the Test series had prompted many former cricketers to call for Fletchers immediate ouster saying that he had not contributed anythingThe former cricketers had also questioned the leadership abilities of captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has a poor track record in overseas conditions The BCCI however has not disturbed Dhoni for the time being Under Fletcher India have now lost 13 Tests outside the subcontinent with seven in England four in Australia one each in New Zealand and South Africa41yearold Bangar had played 12 Tests and 15 ODIs in early 2000 with his gritty halfcentury at Headingley opening in overcast conditions in a memorable victory still remembered Bangar considered to be one of the brightest young coaches had guided an unhrealded Kings XI Punjab team to the final of the IPL and has been widely acclaimed as a shrewd tactician with brilliant knowledge about the domestic setup and its cricketersKarn Sharma a member of current India ODI team had made his debut under Bangars captaincy at the Railways and has attributed a lot of his success to him Having only retired from active cricket a year earlier Bangar is believed to have the best ringside view and is also seen as a future coach of the Indian cricket team by manyBharath Arun had opened the bowling with legendary Kapil Dev in 2 Tests and 4 ODIs in the mid 80s without much success Arun who will probably be the bowling coach has been heading the NCAs bowling unit for a close to seven years now and is best known for guiding the Unmukt Chandled India U19 team to World Cup victory in Australia back in 2012 His record while coaching the senior teams has not been great as under his tutelege the Bengal team relegated from Ranji Trophys Elite to Plate Group back in 200708 domestic seasonFielding coach R Sridhar a former Ranji Trophy player for Hyderabad has been India U19s fielding coach and the junior players swear by his work ethic He has also been a fielding coach with the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL