Lee backs former foe as India coach

Former Australia fast bowler Brett Lee says Sourav Ganguly would do “a great job” if made India’s new head coach.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India will announce its new coach and revamped support staff prior to the team departing for the tour of Bangladesh on June 7.

Outgoing coach, Zimbabwean Duncan Fletcher, vacated the role after four years in the job when his contract expired with India’s semi-final exit from the World Cup at the hands of Australia in March.

While the hunt for Fletcher’s replacement draws to a close, the speculation surrounding Ganguly's future has Lee backing the experienced former India captain to take the coveted role, and says the 42-year-old should look to another targeted international coach as inspiration.

“I think he’d do a great job because he’s got a great wealth of knowledge behind him with so many games of Test match cricket, one-day cricket and Twenty20 cricket,” Lee told cricket.com.au.

“He’s been there and done it all. Will that make him a good coach? I don’t know.

“If he’s hungry for it, with his wealth of knowledge he could definitely pass it on.

“Having the right balance as a coach is the most important thing.

“(Like) people being able to play their natural role, and that all started with Trevor Bayliss.

“He’s the guy that will allow any player in the team to play their natural role.

“If Sourav Ganguly can give these (Indian) players confidence … I think he’d do a good job if he got it.”

Ganguly, veteran of 113 Tests and 7,212 runs spanning 12 years, has been mentioned as a possible candidate in the India media, but not just for the role of head coach.

The left-hander is reportedly being considered as the chairman of the advisory panel, high performance manager, team director or head coach.

"Sourav's contribution to Indian cricket has been great,” BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said following the Indian Premier League Governing Council meeting on Monday.

“He's been a great cricketer.

“It will be worth waiting and whatever will be decided will be in the interest of the Indian cricket.

‘”There's a lot of speculation in the media regarding Sourav and the role of the coach. Give us some time to decide on that.”

India are scheduled to arrive in Kolkata on June 5 to undergo a fitness test the following day, the same day the new coach is expected to be unveiled, before flying out a day later to begin the one-Test and three-ODI tour of Bangladesh starting on June 10 in Fatullah.