Ranchi, June 25: The country couldn't have expected a better desi head coach than legendary spinner Anil Kumble, who was been appointed for the top job by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday, feels former India pacer and co-applicant Venkatesh Prasad.
Prasad, who was in a top banker's shoes today during his visit to Ranchi for an investors' meet by Canara Bank as its DGM, reiterated his feelings about Kumble's appointment minutes before the programme started at Union Club and Library.
"Look, I have said this before and am saying again that had I known about Anil's application, I wouldn't have applied for the job. In fact, many of us, who had applied, came to know about his application in the last moment. Honestly, I think the fight was only between Anil and Ravi Shastri for the prestigious job,"?said Prasad, who had shared dressing room for a long time with the newly-appointed head coach.
When this correspondent asked how he felt after being denied the job of head coach, he said he was neither depressed nor disappointed. "Anil is the best pick for the team under current situations. Team India needs a coach who has been part of the team for so long and played as a true match winner," Prasad remarked.
Asked why he felt Kumble was the right candidate, he said that the spinner was "hugely tactical".
"He has lots of exposure, played enormously with proven credentials and is a fantastic human being above all. So with him at the helm now, I think the team can look forward to win many matches. He knows the importance of victory, no matter what the circumstances are and that's what he will induce, along with positivism, in each player. Everyone respects him, including me, given the fact that I have worked with him for a long time both as a co-player and a bowling coach,"?Prasad said.
On Kumble's lack of coaching experience in international formats, Prasad didn't give any specific answer but stated, "He (Anil) would prove himself."
Former India spinner Sunil Joshi, who was also present at the meet as a divisional manager of the bank, too agreed. "See it's a right combination at the moment. He (Anil) has a sharp brain and team India has many young legs at the moment. For long we had a foreign coach. It was time to have someone Indian. And there can't be any better choice for a desi coach than Anil at the moment," he said.
