Hyderabad: The Indian cricket team's newly appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir will take over the reins with the Men in Blue's white-ball tour to Sri Lanka, which is scheduled to start on July 27. India will play three ODIs and as many T20I games against Sri Lanka in the Island nation.
Former India head coach Rahul Dravid, whose tenure ended with the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2024, was reportedly used to earn Rs 12 crore per year. The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) had announced the Rs 125 crore reward prize for the T20 World Cup champions and Dravid was supposed to receive Rs five crore from it while the other support staff members received Rs 2.5 crore each. However, Dravid has reportedly refused the extra 2.5 crore of the cash bonus announced by the BCCI.
The financial nitty-gritty with the 42-year-old is yet to be worked out but that's the "last of his concerns" right now as he is focused on getting a support staff of choice to prepare for the challenges that await him during the three-year stint.
"For Gautam, he needed to take charge, and salary and other stuff can be worked out as it's not going anywhere. It is similar to the case of Ravi Shastri in 2014 when he was first made Director of Cricket over head coach Duncan Fletcher," a BCCI source told news agency PTI.
"The day Ravi joined, he didn't even have a contract and things worked out. In the case of Gautam also, some finer details are being worked out. The salary will be in the same range as Rahul Dravid," he added.
It is understood that the former left-hand batter will be given his own team to work with, who will also closely coordinate with the NCA (National Cricket Academy) coaches, who look after the pathways teams (India A and U-19) as well as the targeted players.
"I look forward to working closely with the BCCI, Head of Cricket Mr VVS Laxman, the support staff, and, most importantly, the players, as we work towards achieving success in the upcoming tournaments," Gambhir had said.
Gautam Gambhir is expected to take an even higher sum than Dravid as few reports circulating in Indian media suggest that the delay in the BCCI announcement of India's head coach position was due to salary negotiations with the southpaw. However, the BCCI has not announced the actual salary amount of Gambhir, who also represented India.
Apart from the salary, as per the new allowance policy introduced in 2019, the former left-handed batter will also receive an additional $250 (Rs 21,000) daily for an away tour, doubling the previous amount. Barring the allowances, the cricket board will look after his expenses for business class travel, accommodation, and laundry.
Gambhir, who won the Indian Premier League (IPL) title with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on two occasions in 2012 and 2014, served his former franchise as a mentor this year. There were a few reports which suggested that the former KKR captain received almost Rs 25 crore which is 50 lakhs more than the tournament's most expensive player - Mitchell Starc's salary (Rs 24.75 crores). (With agency inputs)
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