Former India head coach Ravi Shastri is not ruling out the possibility of coaching an Indian Premier League (IPL) side in the future.
Speaking to R Ashwin in his YouTube show, Shastri further stated that he was not keen on joining an IPL side after the end of his coaching tenure with the Indian team in 2021 as he wanted to stay away from the dressing rooms for a period time.
"Not really. Not after doing India for 7 years. You never know what can come up in the future and how involved you are going to get," Shastri said.
"You know, there is no doubting the experience you have and what you can bring to the table, but after 7 years with the Indian team, especially those times -- you were there -- the toughest time that game has seen since the World War II -- during Covid, quarantine and the bubbles, you just wanted a break from the dugout, the dressing room and everything. The broadcasting and the mic gave me the freedom to express myself again. And have some fun," Shastri added.
Ravi Shastri served the Indian team as a director from 2014 to 2016 and was made the full-time coach in 2017 before being re-appointed in the role in 2019. His tenure ended after the T20 World Cup in 2021.
Under Shastri, India did reasonably well, especially in overseas conditions. The team won the Test series in Australia (twice), Sri Lanka and West Indies. They were also leading the Test series 2-1 in England in 2021, before the final Test was postponed due to COVID-19 scare in the visiting camp.
Mentoring youngsters is something that he enjoys. Shastri may not take up the IPL coaching job anytime soon but if and when he does, it would be to work with the young talents in the country and not because of monetary gains.
"You don't rule that out. Once you have been involved with the game and played the game and you wanted to contribute to the youth, then that will always linger in your mind. It's not just the money part of it, but also the contributing factor. How you can get into the heads of the young kids and pass on the knowledge you have before you forget it yourself?” Shastri stated.
"If I ever go there, it will be precisely for that reason. Not to see the superstars carrying on the way they are, but to cultivate, identify and groom talent, and take them through the roof.
"I will enjoy it because the spread is so much these days, they have complexes, they have language barriers and challenges culturally. And then get them together to play fearless cricket and ruthless cricket is my cup of tea. So never discount that, it would always be the case when you are handling youngsters," he further remarked.
