Bharat Arun appointed as bowling coach of Indian team: Reports

The BCCI and the CoA have complied with Ravi Shastri’s request of appointing Bharat Arun as the bowling coach of the Indian team. Arun had earlier worked under Shastri during latter’s tenure as the team director between 2014 and 2016.

As reported by Mumbai Mirror, the 54-year-old will join the Indian team immediately which means his second innings with Team India will start from the Sri Lanka tour itself. Arun is all set to reunite with current batting coach, Sanjay Bangar and fielding coach, R. Sridhar, who were previously Arun's colleague in the Indian team during his previous stint.

The CoA approved Shastri’s request stating that the head coach must have the support staff he wants. "That has always been the practice and we've followed that by granting Ravi's request. Arun will be back as the bowling coach," an unnamed CoA member told Mumbai Mirror.

Arun’s appointment, however, does not imply that the CoA has totally rejected the recommendations of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) who had suggested the names of Rahul Dravid and Zaheer Khan as batting and bowling consultants respectively.

"Their services will also be utilized too but it will be as per the need," said the CoA member. "They will be pressed into service for the overseas tours but Ravi will have a say on that too," the member added.

Further, the CoA has formed a four-member committee comprising Diana Edulji, CK Khanna, Amitabh Choudhary, and Rahul Johri to decide on how to decide on how best to utilize the services of both Dravid and Zaheer. The panel will also decide on the terms and conditions of their engagement, as well as the remuneration packages for them.

Meanwhile, in an important development, TNPL franchise VB Thiruvallur Veerans officially announced that Bharat Arun will serve as their Chief Coach for the league that starts on July 22. Arun will work alongside legendary spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, who will serve as the mentor of the franchise.