Bangladesh set deadline for appointing coach

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has set a deadline of October 30 for the appointment of a national coach.

The decision comes in the wake of BCB's ad-hoc committee supporting a proposal by the board president Major General Sina Ibn Jamali. "We have decided to appoint a new national coach before October 30. We are hopeful that we will be able to finalise it before the deadline," Ishtiaque Ahmed, the vice-chairman of the BCB's media committee, told the Dhaka-based Daily Star. .

Ahmed was reported as saying that John Dyson, the former Australian batsman who coached Sri Lanka, had expressed his interest but this was neither confirmed or denied by Gazi Ashraf Hossain, the chairman of the board's cricket operations committee.

"It is better to mention a name only when we can reach a certain level of communication with someone," said Ahmed. "It is always good to set a target but that doesn't mean we compromise with our requirements just to meet the deadline. You need some time to locate the candidates"

The board had made a fresh start in its search for national coach, after all three short-listed candidates had either refused or been ruled out. John Harmer turned down the post after being the only one to make a presentation to the board. Prior to that, Dave Houghton, the former Zimbabwe captain, had withdrawn his candidature citing family problems; while Jamie Siddons, the former Australian batsman, was out of contention after the board couldn't match his terms and conditions.

The board has been looking for a national coach since Dav Whatmore, who guided them for four years, refused to extend his contract. His last assignment was the home series against India in May. Shaun Williams has been interim coach of the team since the the away series against Sri Lanka in June and July.