Gavaskar wonders Duncan Fletcher's fate if he was an Indian

With the contract of Duncan Fletcher being extended by a year, NDTV expert Sunil Gavaskar expressed surprise at the decision while also giving his backing to the Team India coach.

"An Indian coach with that same record would not have got the extension. Have a look at the past - everytime an Indian coach has not done well on a single tour, he has been removed. Just see the way India lost to England and Australia away. Team did not even win the Asia Cup or any other title. They lost the tri-series in Australia too.

"It is a little bit hard to react since I did not know that it (Fletcher contract) was coming up for discussion (at BCCI Working Committee). Goodluck to him though as this gives him the opportunity to better his record over the next year," quipped the former Indian skipper.

Fletcher took over as India's coach on April 27, 2011 with the West Indies tour being his first assignment. His second tour was the disastrous England debacle where a lot was expected of him then with his 'English' connection. A 4-0 drubbing against 'Three Lions' and the same fate Down Under though, brought Fletcher's credentials down to a low from where getting back up seemed impossible, more so as an Indian coach.

Under Fletcher, India had lost 10 out of the 22 Test matches, before the ongoing match in Mohali, having won only eight. The only away Test win was against West Indies nearly two years back just when Fletcher had taken charge.

In the 44 ODI matches played by India post their World Cup triumph, the 'Men in Blue' have won 25 matches and lost 16. There were two tied matches and one match did not yield any result.

When former Australian cricketer and NDTV expert Dean Jones was asked whether any coach deserved extension considering the way the team has performed over the past two years, he too replied in the same vein as Sunny.

"I thought Fletcher would get better results with Team India than what he has got till now. He has lost a couple of Test series badly and he hasn't won any of the major trophies either (World T20, Asia Cup). Many people, just like Sunny, might believe that Duncan is a bit lucky to have got the extension. May be an Indian coach would have got the axe, as Sunny said."

Gavaskar was also quite vociferous when it came to backing certain decisions made by the selectors or the BCCI with regards to the team's future in general.

"Once a team is selected, I do not think it's fair to comment adversely on the player as it could demoralise the individual. May be we can debate before the selection and present our views. Similarly in Fletcher's case we should now back BCCI and hope team does well under him now."

Deano brought up another crucial point pertaining to Fletcher's contract extension, raising questions over the time period. He firmly believed that Fletcher should have either have got the axe or retained till the 2015 World Cup.

Even Gavaskar echoed his views.

"Yes, it makes sense to have him right till the end of next World Cup because in case a new coach is appointed in 2014, it would be difficult for that person to have a positive impact on the team," said Sunny.