Shastri reiterated that his role as Cricket Manager of the Indian team was a one-off assignment and he would not seek to extend his contract with the BCCI.
DHAKA: Former captain Ravi Shastri on Sunday reiterated that his role as Cricket Manager of the Indian team was a one-off assignment and he would not seek to extend his contract with the BCCI.
"I like honeymoons anyway. The more the merrier. The thing is I was very clear right from the outset that I would do this job because it was tough time for India," the player-turned-commentator said after guiding the team to a 1-0 Test series win against Bangladesh.
"I was free, but I had my stand clear with the establishment that I was under a contract with ESPN-Star Sports who are my employers.
"Without their support, I don't think I would be doing this job. I am a professional, I believe in work ethics, I believe in contracts," he said.
Shastri was appointed for the series as a stop-gap arrangement as the Board was yet to a name a successor to Greg Chappell who quit after the World Cup.
The former Test player, who turned 45 on Sunday, is on the BCCI committee that has been set the task of finding India's next coach.
He refused to draw a comparison between his stint and the tenure of former coach Greg Chappell, saying "I don't go into the past, I don't look into the future. I focus on the present."
"The present were these boys given to me by the selection committee. Chappell was past."
Asked how he pepped up the Indian cricketers in the light of their failure in the World Cup, he said, "That's dressing room stuff. We have discussed a lot, we have gone on-on-one with each individual."
Shastri said bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and fielding coach Robin Singh had done a fabulous job.
"They were dedicated cricketers. This job too they did with dedication and pride. And if I am asked they should stay."
He termed as "nonsense" talks of rift in the Indian dressing room during the World Cup.
"I thought that was nonsense. I know now that it is absolute nonsense. I don't know what happens two months down the line. Right now it's absolute nonsense," he said.
"They are a great bunch of guys. I didn't go to the World Cup, I watched from here only. I kept reading a lot. But what I saw was a brilliant bunch.
"The camaraderie was fantastic. When you see these guys play the way they are, enjoying the dressing room, I see a positive sign."
Shastri agreed with skipper Rahul Dravid that the team's scheduling has to be better.
"I think it was tough to play in these conditions. More thought should be put to scheduling."
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