Former Australian cricketer and head coach of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Justin Langer, reacted to the reports of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) approaching him to become India’s head coach.
Langer, who has coached the Australian cricket team in the past, is one of the three foreign coaches, which includes Stephen Fleming and Ricky Ponting, the BCCI has contacted for the position of head coach as Rahul Dravid will step down after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2024.
The Aussie was asked if the Indian board had approached him for taking the job to which he replied: “It would almost be the biggest job in cricket — being the head coach of the Indian cricket team.
“One, because of the huge volume of cricket, the huge expectation. It would be a great challenge. It would be great fun and it would be a wonderful opportunity to win ICC titles.”
He also talked about the immense pressure that comes with taking India’s job. However, the Aussie had the same role with Australia in the past which would help him in handling that.
“But with all these things, the timing has got to be right. I did four or so years with the Australian cricket team. It is all encompassing. It is exhausting,” said the 53-year-old.
“Rahul Dravid will probably tell you the same thing and Ravi Shastri will probably tell you the same thing. The pressure on winning for the Indian team is massive,” he said.
Remember, on Friday, ESPN Cricinfo reported that the BCCI contacted Gautam Gambhir to replace Dravid as the head coach of India.
Gambhir is currently serving as the mentor of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 and his side became the first to make way to the IPL playoffs earlier this month.
While he has been serving as a mentor for two to three years, he has no experience of coaching at international or domestic level.
It is worth mentioning that the BCCI stated that applications must be submitted by 6 pm IST on May 27, 2024.