Tipped to be the next chief selector a couple of months back, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan is not in the race to join the selection panel now. A report in Mumbai Mirror suggests his name does feature in the list of candidates which will be forwarded to the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) soon. The report does not confirm whether his application reached BCCI but sources confirmed to that paper that he did apply for the job.
Also Read: Holidaying During Practice Match? Real Reason Why Virat Kohli Skipped Warm-Up Match
The update does come as a surprise as multiple reports had confirmed that he would replace MSK Prasad. But once BCCI invited applications for the two vacant positions, veterans Ajit Agarkar and Venkatesh Prasad also joined the race.
Both the players are more experienced than Sivaramakrishnan and have made the final cut as well. Surely, the list features more names but one of Agarkar and Prasad is expected to be named as chief selector. However, Nayan Mongia will lead the panel – if selected – by virtue being the most capped Test player among all other applicants.
Apart from the aforementioned names, Chetan Sharma, Amey Khurasiya, Abey Kuruvilla and Rajesh Chauhan are other candidates in the fray for the job.
Also Read: Ready To Open If Needed – Hanuma Vihari
BCCI is expected to name the new selection panel in days to come as the new bunch will pick the ODI squad for the South Africa series.
MSK Prasad and Gagan Khoda’s tenure came to an end in 2019 but since there was no proper BCCI in place, they continued to keep the positions. It also took BCCI little time to appoint a new CAC, which added to the delay.
The three-member panel is headed by former India all-rounder Madan Lal. RP Singh and Sulakshana Naik are two other members of the panel. Apart from naming selectors, CAC will also pick women team’s head coach at the end of 2020.