Aussie influx begins

Moody, who was also the coach of Sri Lanka’s national team and led them to the 2007 World Cup final, is currently the chief coach of Western Australia in the domestic circuit Down Under. The Aussie, it is learnt, has accepted the contract from Mohali and details will be finalised soon. Moody, say sources, has been offered a three-year contract.

The consortium has in place a team of experts who will look into further recruitments—support staff—before arriving in Mumbai on February 20 for the all-important players’ auction. “By Monday, we’ll have more announcements to make,” says a source.

However, for now, they’re convinced that bagging Moody happens to be a winning choice.

For the record, Moody’s Western Australia Twenty20 team has reached the final of the KFC Cup T20 tournament in Australia where they’ll be clashing with Victoria in the final on Sunday.

Apart from Moody, Victoria coach Greg Shipperd too is currently in the race to join one of the IPL teams. Delhi’s GMR Group, who has roped in the services of TA Sekar in capacity of vice-president, sports administration, informed that “Shipperd is definitely among the names” that IPL’s Delhi team is currently looking at.

Sekar, a former fast bowler and also the bowling coach at the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai, will double up as a consultant for the Delhi IPL team in the bowling department and will be chiefly responsible for recruitment of players, coaches and support staff.

“We haven’t finalised anybody as yet. Like Shipperd, we are considering a few others too, but no decision has been taken,” he said.

Meanwhile, Emerging Media, who already have the services of Greg Chappell as chief coach of the Rajasthan Cricket Academy in Jaipur, haven’t yet decided on whether or not to include the Aussies’s services in the IPL. In fact, Emerging Media CEO Fraser Castellino had categorically told The Indian Express earlier that “Chappell would not be considered for Jaipur’s IPL team.”