Board of Control for Cricket in India president Jagmohan Dalmiya rubbished media reports about former Pakistan bowling ace Wasim Akram being hired as India's fast bowling coach.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata on Wednesday, Dalmiya said the Board had not even thought about the former Pakistan skipper's name.
"There is no move to get Akram," said Dalmiya."I don't know why people are making such speculation."
He, however, hastened to add that it is true that the Board is looking for a fast bowling coach.
Media reports quoted India captain Sourav Ganguly as saying, "To me, he [Akram] is greatest fast bowler of the modern era. And I feel that since he is left-handed Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra and Irfan Patham will benefit from his tips. Akram has always been helpful to junior cricketers. So we decided to propose his name to the Board."
The reports said the proposal was mooted by Ganguly and coach John Wright and accepted by the Board.
But, speaking to rediff.com, Wright denied making any such recommendation.
"Rubbish, I have not made any representation to the Board in this regard. The statements attributed to me are not true," he said.
BCCI member and Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Shukla also dismissed talk about hiring Akram.
"Akram had indeed sent us feelers in this regard, but it is impossible to even consider him for the job. Hiring him will eventually snowball into a big political issue," he said.
The the most prolific wicket-taker in the history of cricket, with 414 Test wickets and 502 in One-Day Internationals, recently joined ESPN-Star Sports as a commentator and is expected to be in Australia next month to cover India's tour.
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