To prevent split, panel looks at double vision

Quietly but surely the desi-videshi issue is beginning to be raised in the search for the next Indian cricket coach. And so, the success of ...

Quietly but surely the desi-videshi issue is beginning to be raised in the search for the next Indian cricket coach. And so, the success of John Wright notwithstanding, a compromise formula is being discussed: foreign consultant, Indian coach. 8216;8216;Something like a Greg Chappell-Sandeep Patil twosome,8217;8217; says a source close to the panel.

The players are known to be keen on a foreign coach but the selection panel may have other ideas. At least one former captain on the six-man selection committee is fairly certain that having a foreign coach 8212; despite the belief that he will be free of parochial pressures 8212; is somehow insulting.

The combo offer 8212; 8216;8216;a recipe for confusion in the dressing room8217;8217;, in the words of one former team official 8212; was tried in 2004 when Sunil Gavaskar became team consultant, while Wright was still the official coach.

Senior players are said to prefer Moody. What goes in Moody8217;s favour is that he is the most recently-active of the four names in contention, an allrounder who understands the modern one-day game, appropriate for the 2007 World Cup.

Greg Chappell, on the other hand, is seen as more 8216;8216;cricket guru cum part-time consultant8217;8217; rather than full-time coach. There are some doubts in the panel about his business commitments including in the telecom industry in Australia allowing him to set aside 8216;8216;the required 220 odd days every year8217;8217; with the Indian team.

Both the Indian names have strong backing. Mohinder Amarnath is known to be close to Gavaskar, while Sandeep Patil played alongside Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri for Mumbai.

THREE OTHER COMBINATIONS

	nbsp;	OPTION A: Greg Chappell as coach, an Indian as bowling coach A real possibility since the majority of the panel prefers Chappell as coach. But the option of an Indian bowling coach could see the emergence of Javagal Srinath 8212; which some in the panel don8217;t fancy. A bowling coach has been a longstanding demand of the team and could materialise if this option is exercised. OPTION B: *Tom Moody as coach, Indian as batting coach* Since Tom Moody was an all-rounder, bowling will be taken care of. Hence the need for someone to look after India8217;s problem area in recent times: batting. This is where Mohinder Amarnath fits in. He8217;s helped out quite a few Indian stars in the past, especially skipper Sourav Ganguly. OPTION C: Foreign coach and Indian manager A full-time manager had been a long-standing demand of outgoing coach John Wright. But it remained unfulfilled. Only once did the team have a manager for two successive tours 8212; Chetan Chauhan as manager in the historic 2001 series against Australia and on the Zimbabwe tour the same year. But to appease its vote bank BCCI doles out the manager8217;s post to state associations for every tour. Doubtful if it will happen, since Sandeep Patil has already worked as coach and Mohinder Amarnath is too senior for running around doing mundane chores. The Australian coach Steve Bernard has been the manger for more than eight seasons. 8212; Express News Service	nbsp;