The Great Game Called Cricket...

India are in no hurry to find a replacement for Gary Kirsten as the national coach, and it seems increasingly likely that the team will travel to the West Indies in June with a caretaker - if anyone - in charge. Shashank Manohar, the BCCI president, has said the process to find a coach is ongoing, and is unlikely to be discussed in any great detail at the board's working committee meeting on April 27.

"We are still in the process of doing so (finding a new coach). There's no hurry as the team is leaving for the West Indies only on June 1," BCCI president Shashank Manohar told PTI.

Potential suitors for the position, given the decidedly difficult task of following Kirsten, must think carefully about the demands of the job, while the ECB have moved to shore up their contractual arrangements with Andy Flower, should he be interested in a new challenge on the subcontinent.

Duncan Fletcher has also been linked to the India role, having had the benefit of a few years' rest since his stint with England ended.

Another name thrown up as a possible candidate is Stephen Fleming, the Chennai Super Kings coach and former captain of New Zealand. Widely regarded as possessing a sharp tactical brain, Fleming is nonetheless inexperienced as a coach, using the IPL as his chance to place a toe in the water for a few months of the year.

"I'm enjoying coaching Chennai Super Kings. I got my hands full at CSK. It is a good experience. I haven't thought a lot about my coaching career. It is something that I'll consider as time goes on," Fleming said of expanding his career after Chennai's eight-run loss to Mumbai Indians.

"It's a great challenge for two months of the year. I am still learning my coaching philosophies as a coach in these two months."