Reports: BCCI might pick Laxman Sivaramakrishnan as Indian team's new chief selector

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has been in search of a new chief selector for the Indian team. At the moment the position is being held by MSK Prasad who was appointed as the selector of Indian men’s team in 2016 by BCCI. There has been a lot of criticism over Prasad for his team’s selection.

Recently, he was put up under the question of not selecting Ambati Rayudu in the World Cup squad and there are quite a few circumstances BCCI have started looking for a new person and will not extend Prasad tenure as chief selector and former Indian spinner Lakshman Sivaramakrishnan is looked like an ideal candidate for the role.

Sivaramakrishnan, former Indian spinner who has played nine Tests and 16 ODIs between 1983-1987. He is currently working as a commentator but if he has to take up this new role, then he has to leave his commentator’s job. Currently he has a contract with BCCI as a commentator that comes to an end during the annual general meeting which is scheduled to be held on October 23.

BCCI finding it hard to find the new chief selector

Reports say that BCCI is finding it hard to find a new candidate for the national selector role because of the salary issue. It looks like BCCI reviews the salary package that is being offered to selectors across all age-groups. There are talks of increasing the remunerations for the chairman of the senior national selection panel to Rs 1.5 crore, with the other four sets to be offered Rs 1.2 crore.

Even the junior men’s and women’s selectors are likely to be given a raise on par with international standards. The Indian board has to finalize the selector as the Bangladesh series is on the line that will take place just 10 days after the final South Africa Test.

It is only MSK Prasad who will be replaced as Sarandeep Singh, Jatin Paranjpe and Devang Gandhi are set to continue in their roles for another year until their term ends in 2020. BCCI’s struggle to find full-time members for the post can lead Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), which has the responsibility of appointing the coaches and selectors, turn it into a paid job. This can force BCCI to ask the interim panel comprising Kapil Dev, Anshuman Gaekwad, and Shantha Rangaswamy to continue for a year.