Raj Singh Dungarpur has slammed the Board of Control for Cricket in India for, what he called, an unprofessional approach in the process of selecting the new India coach.
"The way our Board works now it is a bit of a joke," Dungarpur told rediff.com
"The whole image of the Board has taken a beating in the last one year because of the many squabbles the BCCI has started," the former BCCI president said.
"In 2005 how can you run any organisation without a CEO?"
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Dungarpur said the Board needs more professionals to coordinate the different procedures, one of which is setting up a committee to select the new coach.
"It is the Board president who should be working on it. But the reigns continue to remain in the hands of Jagmohan Dalmiya," he added.
The BCCI announced on Wednesday evening that a panel would be set up in the next two days to select the coach and it will shortlist the candidates for the job. On Friday, it announced that BCCI chief Ranbir Singh Mahendra will head the committee to select the coach.
Dungarpur was a part of the committee, appointed by then BCCI president A C Mutthiah, which selected John Wright in 2000.
"We only interviewed two people then: Greg Chappell and John Wright. One impression we got of Greg Chappell was that he was keener on knowing what the Board would be paying him. He is a great cricketer of course, but his aim seemed to be money.
"John Wright told us he would take up the job even with 50 per cent of what the Board was offering him. He said he wasn't working for the money but had come to India to prove himself as a good coach."
For the record, the New Zealander did a great job with the team, taking it to memorable and historic wins, but, in the end, got a obscure farewell from the BCCI.
He quit after the series against Pakistan last month, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family.
Dungarpur felt Wright was not treated well by the BCCI.
"We never had a coach before him. There were people like Madan Lal, Anshuman Gaekwad and Sandeep Patil who were with the team, but they weren't given an extended run. You can't have a coach for one season.
"I think Wright should have been retained till the 2007 World Cup. The BCCI didn't handle him too well. He didn't have enough say in the team selection, which is something he has also stated. The coach, captain and the chairman (of selectors) are the main people and they should have the maximum say."
Asked whether India should persist with a foreign coach, Dungarpur said India suffers from a lack of choices of homegrown coaches.
"Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev are the only two Indians who come to mind immediately. Kapil is too natural a cricketer for a position like that. And that showed during his coaching stint with the Indian team.
"Gavaskar, unfortunately, has never held an accountable post in the BCCI.
"Sandeep Patil is the best coach India has today. He has been coaching for the last seven years and look at the wonders he has done with Kenya and Madhya Pradesh. He will also achieve a lot as Oman's coach."
Dungarpur refused to make his shortlist of foreign candidates for the job, saying it would not be right to do so since he is not in the BCCI committee.
But he did add: "I hear Steve Rixon is being talked about as the best coach. I don't know whether the BCCI is thinking about him. He is coaching some county side. He could be a good choice."
Rixon, 51, a former Australia wicketkeeper, coached New Zealand from 1996 to 1999. He also coached New South Wales and is currently coaching Surrey.
