Arunachal appoints Dinesh Mongia as head coach

Former India cricketer Dinesh Mongia has been appointed the head coach of Arunachal Pradesh ahead of the domestic season.

Dinesh Mongia with Arunachal Cricket Association secretary Kabak Geda, in Itanagar.

Former India international Dinesh Mongia has been appointed the head coach of Arunachal Pradesh ahead of the upcoming domestic season.

The 44-year-old Mongia, who retired from all forms of cricket in 2019, confirmed the development to Sportstar . “There will be a challenge for sure. These young players are slightly lagging behind, so with my experience and knowledge, I will help these guys improve their game and hopefully, in a year or two, I can give you some good results,” Mongia said.

He was part of India’s 2003 World Cup side that reached the final. He, however, played for India in an ODI for the last time in 2007, before joining the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) and subsequently facing a ban by the BCCI. Even though the ICL players were given amnesty by the BCCI later, Mongia did not play any international games since.

READ: Abu Nechim moves on from Assam, to play for Nagaland this season

In 2017, Mongia, however, returned to the fold as Punjab named him selector.

A classy batsman, Mongia made his U-19 debut for Punjab in October 1995 and made rapid progress to earn first-class debut in 1996. In 2001, he made his debut for India against Australia in Pune and played 57 ODIs and a lone T20I.

This will be his first senior-level coaching assignment and he is looking forward to it. “I have to create a formula to make them understand what real cricket is. Arunachal and some northeast states don’t have very good infrastructure right now, but I need to get them to the ground and get the results. It is a challenge for sure, but I am looking forward to it,” he said.

The Arunachal state association secretary Kabak Geda said the presence of Mongia will help the team. “He visited us on August 28 and was really impressed by the raw talent we have. Being a former international cricketer of the modern era, he will bring a lot of experience with him and that will help our players,” Geda said.

In the two editions of Ranji Trophy that it has featured in, Arunachal Pradesh was coached by Gursharan Singh and Sanjeev Sharma.