Arun likely to be India bowling coach

New Delhi: In a clear snub to the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), newly appointed India coach Ravi Shastri seems to have managed to convince the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Advisors (CoA) to take Bharat Arun on board as bowling coach.

The CAC, comprising former India captains Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar along with former batsman VVS Laxman, had suggested Zaheer Khan as bowling consultant and Rahul Dravid as overseas batting consultant for the India team.

"The CoA has decided to grant Shastri his wish as it is no secret that the head coach will have to work with the bowling coach on a full-time basis and there should be clear communication and understanding between the two individuals.

"The Cricket Advisory Committee's decision to appoint Zaheer Khan as the bowling consultant (overseas) stands and a call on that will be taken after the new four-member panel of the BCCI meets and decides on matters of appointment and the financial details," a senior BCCI official was quoted as saying by CricketNext on Sunday.

Zaheer was the preferred choice of Ganguly, who reportedly does not see eye-to-eye with Shastri on several issues. If the CoA does grant Shastri his wish, it will be a clear snub to the CAC, particularly to Ganguly.

The controversy over the appointment of Dravid and Zaheer had taken a new turn on Saturday with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) forming a four-member committee to take a call on the assistant coaches for the national team.

The constitution of the committee, which will comprise BCCI acting President C.K. Khanna, BCCI acting Secretary Amitabh Choudhary, Committee of Administrators (CoA) member Diana Edulji and board CEO Rahul Johri as the convenor, virtually signals that the decision to appoint Dravid and Zaheer could be revisited