Haynes joins the fray

Desmond Haynes, the former West Indian opener, has thrown his hat in the ring for the Indian coaching job. The Board of Control for Cricket in India announced that its panel, comprising Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, Srinivas Venkataraghavan, Ranbir Singh Mahendra and Jagmohan Dalmiya, would interview the short-listed candidates on May 19 in Delhi. The others in the frame are Greg Chappell, Tom Moody and Mohinder Amarnath.

Haynes, who is the secretary of the West Indies Players' Association, coached the Barbados team in 2002, and has also chaired the National Sports Council of the island.

Sandeep Patil, who was earlier short-listed for the job, has withdrawn from the race. He conveyed this to the board in a written response to an invitation to be interviewed. John Emburey, the former England offspinner, was also connected with the job, but he too has expressed his inability to take up the post were it to be offered to him.