Now that Rahul Dravid has left the Indian dressing room in the most glorious way possible by ending his tenure as the head coach with the T20 World Cup trophy, it is only a matter of time before Gautam Gambhir takes over the mantle. The question is, how much time?

The former opening batter has been the front-runner for the role ever since Dravid confirmed his unwillingness to continue after the T20 World Cup. Gambhir, in fact, was among the only two applicants - the other being WV Raman - to go through the interview process conducted by the Cricket Advisory Committee of Ashok Malhotra, Jatin Paranjape and Sulakshana Naik. Multilple reports suggest that Gambhir certain to be India's next head coach.

The former left-hander was also seen shooting a farewell video for the Kolata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, signalling the premature end of his second innings at the franchise after playing a crucial role in making them IPL champions after 10 years. If things are this obvious, then why is it taking so long for the BCCI to announce the inevitable?

The answer lies in salary negotiations. According to The Indian Express, Gambhir and BCCI are in the "final stages of salary negotiations". The moment Gambhir's remuneration is finalised, the BCCI will make the announcement.

The BCCI keeps the options open regarding the salary of the head coach of the Indian cricket team (Men). In the advertisement inviting applicants for the same, It was mentioned that the remuneration is “negotiable and will be commensurate with experience."

Gambhir is expected to draw a higher salary than the previous coach, Rahul Dravid, whose yearly remuneration was around ₹12 core.

This will be Gambhir's first assignment on a national level. For the record, he has never been associated as the head coach of any team. His only coaching experience has been in the IPL, where he was the mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants for a couple of seasons before switching to KKR last year and helping them win the IPL.

Currently, the Indian side in Zimbabwe is playing under the guidance of NCA head VVS Laxman. BCCI secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that India will travel to Sri Lanka for a white-ball series with a new head coach.

The report also adds that the BCCI will soon invite applications for the team’s support staff as the tenures of batting coach Vikram Rathour, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, and fielding coach T Dilip ended after the T20 World Cup in the USA and the West Indies.

While appointing the support staff, the BCCI follows the practice of allowing the head coach to take the final call. Gambhir will reportedly be given a free hand to choose his support staff after the application process is completed.

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