The Ashok Malhotra-led Cricket Advisory Committee will interview candidates for the national junior selection committee at the BCCI headquarters on Tuesday. About 15 people got shortlisted for the five-member panel. The board wants to keep the selection process uniform after the previous committee’s tenure ended on September 17 this year.
The Ashok Malhotra-led Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) will interview candidates for the national junior selection committee at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) headquarters in Mumbai on Tuesday.
Sportstar understands that about 15 candidates have been shortlisted, with interviews expected to be conducted both virtually and in person. While the BCCI office-bearers can directly appoint the junior selection committee without a CAC interview, unlike the senior panel, the Board is understood to be keen on maintaining uniformity in the selection process across categories. Accordingly, Malhotra and fellow CAC member Jatin Paranjpe have been tasked with conducting the interviews.
The appointment process comes after the tenure of the incumbent panel, headed by S. Sharath, formally ended on September 17. The committee continued for another week to complete pending work, including the selection of the India U-23 squad for the C.K. Nayudu Trophy. It also finalised a provisional squad for the Asia Cup.
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None of the outgoing selectors was present in Rajkot or Ahmedabad for the India-Australia under-19 series or at the ongoing Vinoo Mankad Trophy. Players' performances, however, are being monitored by the coaching staff, which includes coaches from the BCCI Centre of Excellence who are familiar with their development.
Ramesh Powar, Praveen Kumar, Devendra Bundela, Saurasish Lahiri, Ashish Winston Zaidi, Sudip Tyagi and Nikhil Doru are among the prominent candidates to have applied for positions on the five-member committee.
There had been speculation that Powar could be appointed chairman. With former India pacer Praveen also in contention, the choice could hinge on their international experience. Powar played two Tests and 31 ODIs for India, while Praveen featured in six Tests, 68 ODIs and 16 T20Is.
As per the BCCI's selection protocol, the candidate with more Test appearances is generally preferred for the chairman's role. Powar recently worked with Australia's under-19 team in a short-term assignment, helping its spinners during the Youth ODI series against India.