No Guru Dav, BCCI opens up two-horse race

Trust BCCI to pull off surprise, stunning enough to stun the dead. So far, Team India coach’s job looked a one-horse race, or so said a miffed Madan Lal. But see, Dav Whatmore – resembled more a mustachioed polar beer than a strapping horse – has been pushed outside the lane.

BCCI announced it’s now a two-horse race and one of the stallions is a phantom! Board Treasurer N Srinivasan – apt that the person who would dole out the money addressed reporters – said apart from South African Graham Ford, another “"foreigner whose availability could not be ascertained" are in the fray.

As for Dav Whatmore, who was clearly counting his chickens before they were hatched, Srinivasan said "You can say by implication that yes, he has been ruled out".

Guru Dav seemed almost certain to step into Guru Greg’s shoes and Whatmore did not leave any stone unturned in his thorough PR. He met Rahul Dravid, Ravi Shastri, Niranjan Shah and reportedly sought appointment with the BCCI janitor at Wankhede Stadium to present his case. Poor Whatmore even refused an extension of his contract with the Bangla Tigers and also turned down offer from Pakistan hope for the India job.

BCCI dangled the carrots – Shah insisted the Australian was the front-runner – and Whatmore could no resist the temptation. It’s an awkward situation for the burly coach, who was last spotted scanning JOB OPPORTUNITY pages and applying to a coaching job in Timbuktu.

Photo: AFP