The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has appointed Gursharan Singh as the coach of Arunachal Pradesh for this edition of the Ranji Trophy.
A former batsman from Punjab, Singh, has featured in an ODI and a lone Test for India. He is presently coaching the India Blue side in the Duleep Trophy.
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In an email sent to the Arunachal Pradesh Cricket Association late on Tuesday — which Sportstar has seen — the BCCI confirmed that Singh will be the head coach, while Anuj Pal Dass—who coached Tripura earlier will be looking after the U-23 side.
Former Tamil Nadu cricketer, CS Suresh Kumar, has been named the coach of the U-19 side, while former Assam batsman, Gautam Dutta will be the U-16 men’s coach.
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Former Karnataka player, Rangarao Ananth, will be coaching the senior women’s team, while former India international, Diana David, will work with the U-19 and U-23 sides.
The association has roped in Aprameya Jaiswal as a guest player. Hailing from Gorakhpur, he has played for Haryana U-16 and U-19 side. It is also in final stages of talks with the Delhi-based top-order batsman, Kshitiz Sharma. Having featured in 12 T20s and two List A matches for Delhi, Kshitiz was picked by Chennai Super Kings in the last Indian Premier League. But he wasn’t given a match.
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Arunachal Cricket Association’s president and the state’s former Chief Minister, Nabam Tuki, told Sportstar that having youngsters in the squad will help the team. “Initially there could be a challenge for the side, but with such young players joining us, our local cricketers will also be motivated to perform better,” Tuki said.
While most of the new entrants have at least a couple of BCCI-affiliated local coaches, Arunachal Pradesh doesn’t have any. And the association secretary, Koli Tado, admitted that it was one of the reasons why the state had to depend on seasoned coaches. “We had requested the BCCI to give us a coach because we don’t have any coaches here. It is a problem, but that’s how it is,” Tado said.
With no ground in the state, Arunachal Pradesh is set to play its Ranji Trophy matches in Assam - a venue, however, is yet to be finalised.
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