Gary Kirsten reportedly applies for position of coach in India women’s cricket team

There are many names floating around when it comes to the position of the coach of the India women’s cricket team. One of the names added in this is Gary Kirsten, the former South Africa cricketer who helped India win the 2011 World Cup at home after a period of 28 years. According to a report in the Times of India, a top BCCI official said that Kirsten had applied for the position. Along with Kirsten, the other names in the list are Atul Bedade, David Johnson, Rakesh Sharma, Manoj Prabhakar, Owais Shah, Herschelle Gibbs, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Dominic Thornely, Gargi Banerjee, Vidyuth Jaisimha, Ramesh Powar, Colin Siller and Dav Whatmore.

The three-member panel appointed for conducting the interview includes former India skipper Kapil Dev, who helped India win the World Cup title for the first time in 1983, Shantha Rangaswamy and Anshuman Gaekwad and the interviews will be conducted on December 20. It is reported that the decision will be made prior to the women’s cricket team departing for New Zealand on January 24. India will play three ODIs and three Twenty20 Internationals against the New Zealand side.

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The likes of Prabhakar and Gibbs have been accused of match-fixing but the conundrum has deepened even further with Ramesh Powar, whose tenure was not renewed after India’s exit in the semi-final of the ICC Women’s World T20 in the West Indies. Powar has reapplied for the post after getting strong support from India women’s skipper Harmanpreet Kaur. Speaking to PTI, Powar confirmed that he had applied. “"Yes, I have applied this evening because Smriti (Mandhana), Harmanpreet (Kaur) have supported me and I can't let them (the girls) down by not applying," said Powar.

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During the ICC Women’s World T20 semi-final, the team management including Powar and Harmanpreet dropped Mithali Raj, triggering a massive controversy. After returning home from the West Indies, Mithali went on to accuse Powar and COA member Diana Edulji of trying to destroy her and being biased against her. Powar, on his part, accused Mithali of threatening to retire midway into the World T20 after being denied the opening slot and creating chaos in the team.  Following the controversy, the BCCI decided to invite fresh applications for the post.