'By implication', Whatmore was left out

According to sources, Whatmore’s aggressive push for the job via the media did not go down well with the committee, writes G Krishnan.

As things stand, either Graham Ford, or, a second, unnamed foreigner will be appointed India’s new coach this summer. If, of course, the BCCI brass finally make up their collective minds and the man in question decides he can deal with the unmatched pressures of the job.

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The big happening, in addition to the frenzied search for the identity of the other candidate (speculation was rife that it could be any of Duncan Fletcher, Arjun Ranatunga, John Bracewell, John Buchanan or any other) was what happened to Dav Whatmore?

BCCI treasurer N Srinivasan, who made the announcement to the media here after the seven-member coach selection panel concluded their meeting, refused to get into details. “We have decided to invite Ford and another coach of foreign origin for discussions on June 9 in Chennai. We have not been able to reach the second person so far but we hope to do it soon,” he said, before adding the major line: “We had made contact with Whatmore before. By implication you can say that Whatmore is out of contention.”