Amol Muzumdar set to become Indian women’s cricket team head coach

With the Indian team set to leave for Bangladesh a couple of days later, the BCCI is expected to formally announce his appointment soon.

File Photo: Muzumdar, who was most recently the head coach of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy side and has had stints with IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals and the South African national team. | Photo Credit: Karunakaran M/ The Hindu

Amol Muzumdar is set to be the head coach of India’s women’s cricket team for the next two years. The Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), headed by Ashok Malhotra, interviewed three candidates - Tushar Arothe, Jon Lewis and Muzumdar - and zeroed in on the former Mumbai captain and coach for the top job.

After Ramesh Powar was transferred to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) last December, the India women’s team has been without a head coach.

Though Hrishikesh Kanitkar stepped in as batting coach for the home series against Australia and the T20 World Cup, he did not apply for the head coach role, and keeping Muzumdar’s experience of working with the IPL (Indian Premier League) franchises and the South Africa men’s team, he was the preferred choice.

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Sportstar understands that the Cricket Advisory Committee was impressed with Muzumdar’s presentations as he was clear in his approach, as compared to the other two candidates. In his presentation, the 48-year-old Muzumdar focused a lot on the fitness of the team and the importance of having a full-fledged support staff.

With the Indian team set to leave for Dhaka a couple of days later, the BCCI is expected to formally announce his appointment soon.

After chopping and changing the head coach for far too long, the BCCI plans to rope in Muzumdar for two years and he is expected to guide the team to an elusive ICC title in Bangladesh next year when the T20 World Cup is held.

Muzumdar, who was most recently the head coach of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy side and has had stints with IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals and the South African national team, was the only one who appeared for the interview in person.

Muzumdar, one of the stalwarts of domestic cricket, amassed 11,167 runs in first-class cricket for Mumbai and Assam, but an India berth eluded him. Under his coaching, Mumbai reached the final of the Ranji Trophy last year, and went on to win the Vijay Hazare Trophy last season.

A few weeks ago, the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) had shortlisted Muzumdar as the head coach, but now with the India job coming his way, the BCA will have to look for a new head coach.