On Thursday, 23rd June 2016, BCCI announced Team India’s new Head Coach and it was none other than India’s most successful bowler Anil Kumble. He will be in charge for a period of 12 months & his first assignment will be India’s Test tour of the West Indies, the very place where he secured his first series triumph as a captain.

Anil Kumble or Jumbo as we lovingly call him, not only had an illustrious career with 619 test wickets and 337 ODI wickets, but was also known for his many qualities on and off the field. His indomitable attitude and his fighting spirt was evident when he came out to bowl with a broken jaw against West Indies in the year 2002. His achievements and accolades doesn’t just end as a player. In the year 2013, he was appointed as the mentor of Mumbai Indians when he guided us to our first IPL win. We won the trophy again in 2015 under his mentorship which proves how apt he is for the role of a mentor or a Head Coach.

“It’s a great honour for me to be a part of the Indian team again. It will be wonderful to get into the Indian dressing room, as a coach. I am really looking forward to the challenge and the responsibility. I know there will be a lot of expectations, that’s something which I will be looking forward to,” said an excited Jumbo.
Let’s take a look at his achievements from his illustrious career:

1990 – Marked the beginning of his Test career against England.

1993 – Impressed everyone with a strong performance in a 3 Test series vs England at home by picking 21 wickets.

1993 – Picked up 6/12 vs WI to record best bowling figures by an Indian in ODI. His record stood tall for over 2 decades.

1996 – Picked up 90 Test wickets in a calendar year and also finished 1996 WC campaign as the highest wicket taker.

1999 – Picked up 10 wickets in a Test innings against Pakistan which became the highlight of his career.

2004 – Surpassed Kapil Dev’s tally of 434 Test wickets to become India’s leading wicket taker in the longer format.

2007 – Retired from the ODI’s with an impressive tally of 337 wickets.

2007 – Scored his maiden Test hundred at The Oval, England.

2007 – Appointed as the Indian Test captain.

2008 – Picked up his 600th Test wicket by dismissing Andrew Symonds in the Perth Test match.

2008 – Announced his retirement from international cricket.

2013 – Appointed as Mumbai Indians’ Chief Mentor and guided us to our maiden IPL trophy.

2015 – Again at the helm of Mumbai Indians as the Chief Mentor, MI won another IPL trophy.

2016 – Appointed as the Head Coach of the Indian Cricket team.

We wish Jumbo all the best for his new journey as the Head Coach of the Indian cricket team.

Quotes taken from www.bcci.tv