Taylor leads hunt for Buchanan's replacement

Mark Taylor, the former Test captain, will chair the five-man committee that will recommend the coach to follow John Buchanan's seven-year reign. Buchanan will walk away after the World Cup in April and Tim Nielsen, the current Centre of Excellence mentor, and Tom Moody, the former Australia allrounder and current Sri Lanka coach, are the early favourites.

Allan Border and Daryl Foster, who are both Cricket Australia directors, will join Taylor and the Cricket Australia officials James Sutherland and Michael Brown in analysing the candidates. Steve Rixon, the former New Zealand coach, has already signalled his wish for the job while Greg Chappell (India) and Bennett King (West Indies) are also expected to be considered.

"The recommendation of a replacement coach will be one of the most important decisions Cricket Australia needs to make in the next 12 months, especially given the benchmark set by John Buchanan," Taylor said. "The committee will discuss in the next few weeks the process it will use and the criteria it will set for the appointment." Ricky Ponting will also have a strong say as he will have to work closely with the new coach to guide the Australian team through a period of transition.