KSCA shows the door to Shashikanth, Anil

In a surprising turn of events, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) removed senior team’s head coach P V Shashikanth and his assistant G K Anil Kumar from their roles despite the duo producing decent results in the 2017-18 season.

The KSCA, at its managing committee meeting on Friday, named Yere Goud and S Arvind as the batting and bowling coaches of the senior team for the 2018-19 season.

Goud, a former Karnataka Ranji captain, was the State U-19 coach last season. The right-hand batsman, who played 134 first-class matches, also represented Railways in his 17-year-long domestic career. S Arvind, the former India left-arm pacer who played a pivotal role in Karnataka’s unprecedented double-treble feat, retired last season after the state team’s triumph in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Karnataka had enjoyed a good run across all formats under Shashikanth and Anil Kumar, who were handling the responsibility for the first time in their coaching careers. The state team had a strong run in the Ranji Trophy before losing narrowly in the semifinal against Vidarbha.

In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, they topped the South Zone league. Under the captaincy of Karun Nair, Karnataka ended their three-season title drought and clinched the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Karnataka also made it to their maiden Deodhar Trophy final.

Players like Mayank Agarwal and K Gowtham had a breakthrough year while two quality young pacers in Prasidh Krishna and T Pradeep came to the fore.

Sudhakar Rao, secretary, KSCA, said the office-bearers felt they needed a change.

“It was a unanimous decision and all the office-bearers felt we needed a change in the coaching system. Yere Goud has played more than 100 first-class matches. And he understands the system because he has coached the U-19 and U-16 teams. So we wanted to promote him. Arvind is very experienced. These days you need not have to undergo coaching programmes but experience matters,” explained Rao.

Rao added that the KSCA wasn’t harsh on Shashikanth and Anil Kumar. “It’s not like we have dropped them. They have done well and we will make use of their coaching abilities in the KSCA academy,” he said.

Goud said he was up for the challenge. “I had a feeling I will get this job. Under my coaching, Devdutt Padikkal (fourth highest run-getter) and Shubhang Hegde (third highest wicket-taker) did well last year in the U-19 tournament. I think my good stints with the junior team helped me get this job,” he offered.

Arvind said he saw this as a fine opportunity. “The senior team has done well, but in the last three years, we have not reached the Ranji Trophy final. We just need to get a little better. I hope I will be able to help the team do that. This team has been like a family to me. It will be nice to see the same faces again. So far, I used to manage myself. Now, I will have to manage all players. That is the only difference in being a coach,” he said.