COA asks BCCI to name India coach by Tuesday

Mumbai, July 11 (IANS) The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (COA) wants the Indian cricket team coach to be named by Tuesday, it has been reliably learnt.

According to sources, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been asked by the COA to appoint the coach by Tuesday, after the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and V.V.S. Laxman deferred the announcement after interviewing five candidates on Monday.

Lalchand Rajput, Virender Sehwag, Richard Pybus, Ravi Shastri and Tom Moody were the candidates who were interviewed on Monday by the three-member CAC.

"What we have decided is we will hold on for the time being for the announcement of the coach. We need a few more days and talk to a few more people, especially the captain and then make an announcement because we feel that there is no hurry at the moment," Ganguly told the media after the interviews.

The COA comprises Vinod Rai as chairman, and Vikram Limaye and Diana Edulji as the other members.

Shastri is considered to be one of the favourites for the job since he enjoys good relations with Kohli. The former India all-rounder had delivered results during his previous stint as Director with the Indian team, a factor which may also work in his favour.

The Indian team, especially skipper Virat Kohli, has been at the centre of a controversy after leg-spin legend Anil Kumble resigned as coach following a humiliating 180-run loss to Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy final on June 18.

Kumble had hinted at differences with Kohli in his resignation letter to the BCCI. There have also been reports that several players were unhappy with Kumble's strict disciplinarian approach.

Some players were also reportedly unhappy after Kumble handed a harsh dressing down to the team following the defeat in the Champions Trophy final.