Ricky Ponting confirms being approached for India head coach role; denies big offer

Currently, Ricky Ponting is the head coach of Delhi Capitals in the IPL.

Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has confirmed that he was approached by the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) to take over from Rahul Dravid as the next head coach of the Indian cricket team. However, Ponting revealed that he denied BCCI’s offer as it would require him to be on the job for 10 months a year.

Currently, Ponting is serving as the head coach of Delhi Capitals (DC) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. His franchise failed to reach the playoffs this season, finishing sixth in the points table with 14 points.

Earlier this month, the BCCI invited applications to hire a new head coach for the men’s team. Former captain Rahul Dravid’s tenure will come to an end in June after the conclusion of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. It is to be noted that the deadline to apply for the post of head coach is May 27.

Dravid’s first contract ended after the conclusion of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023, where India lost in the final. The BCCI convinced Dravid to agree to a contract extension as the T20 World Cup 2024 wasn’t far away. During Dravid’s tenure, India have won only one major title, Asia Cup 2023. They played brilliantly in the ODI World Cup and the World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23, but lost both finals to Australia.

Want to have a bit of time at home: Ricky Ponting on head coach role offered by BCCI

Ponting said he would love to be the head coach of a national team, but isn’t keen on taking the job as he wants to spend time with his family. The legendary Australian cricketer revealed that there were a few unofficial “one-on-one conversations” during IPL 2024 between him and BCCI officials where the board members sought his interest in the job.

“I’ve seen a lot of reports about it. Normally, these things pop up on social media before you even know about them. But, there were a few little one-on-one conversations during the IPL, just to get a level of interest from me as to whether I would do it,” Ponting told the ICC Review.

“I’d love to be a senior coach of a national team, but with the other things that I have in my life and wanting to have a bit of time at home…everyone knows if you take a job working with the Indian team you can’t be involved in an IPL team, so it would take that out of it as well,” Ricky Ponting added.

Ponting further explained that the national head coach role doesn’t fit into his lifestyle. He stated, “Also, a national head coach is a 10 or 11 months of the year job. As much as I’d like to do it, it just doesn’t fit into my lifestyle right now and the things that I really enjoy doing.”

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