Former India spinner Sairaj Bahutule has been named as India's spin bowling coach, the BCCI confirmed the news with an announcement on Tuesday. His appointment was on the expected lines, as several reports claimed that he will take up the role once the IPL 2026 comes to an end.
Notably, this announcement comes just before the upcoming one-off Test and three ODIs against Afghanistan.
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Opening up on his appointment, Sairaj expressed gratitude to get appointed as India's spin bowling coach. The former player recalled his experience of representing the nation as an athlete, calling it a matter of immense pride.
"It is a tremendous honour to be appointed as the Spin Bowling Coach of the Indian Men’s Cricket Team. Representing India as a player was a matter of immense pride, and the opportunity to contribute to Indian Cricket once again in a coaching capacity is deeply special. I look forward to working with the players and supporting the team’s pursuit of excellence across formats," said Bahutule.
Earlier, he was associated with Punjab Kings (PBKS) as the side's spin bowling coach for the recently concluded IPL 2026. However, his side failed to bank on the sensational start in the first half of the season, as the Shreyas Iyer-led side missed the playoff berth by a margin of just one point.
Sairaj Bahutle's previous stints with Indian team
Interestingly, Sairaj has already worked with the senior Indian team on a few assignments. He was working at the Centre of Excellence headed by VVS Laxman. Former India head coach Rahul Dravid had asked Bahutule to be a part of the Indian team setup during the 2023 Border-Gavaskar series. He also travelled with the Indian team during the Sri Lanka tour.