UPCA appoints Arvind Kapoor head coach, Md Amir as deputy | Lucknow News

Lucknow: Amid debate over appointing a local or out-of-state coach, the UPCA on Saturday named former Uttar Pradesh and Railways player from Jhansi, Arvind Kapoor, as the new head coach of the Ranji Trophy team for the upcoming season. Former UP wicketkeeper Mohammad Amir Khan from Kanpur has been appointed as his deputy.Both will join the UP Ranji Trophy camp scheduled at Green Park, Kanpur, from Monday, as the team is set to kickstart its campaign against Andhra Pradesh at the same venue on Oct 15. Arvind Kapoor replaces former Indian left-arm spinner Sunil Joshi, whose two-year tenure ended without much success. Kapoor has previously served as a UP junior selector and chairman of the junior selection committee. He also served as mentor of the Meerut Mavericks in the third season of the UPT20 league, while Amir Khan was head coach of Lucknow Falcons. It is hoped the new coaching duo will bring fresh ideas and strategies to help the team produce its best results in the Ranji Trophy this season, having not won the trophy since the 2005-06 season. It will be a challenging task for both Arvind and Amir to help the team perform across all three formats, Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare (50 overs), and Syed Mushtaq Ali (20 overs), in the new season. A senior UPCA official said, “Arvind Kapoor and Mohammad Amir have been appointed as head coach and assistant coach for the upcoming seasons of the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare, and Syed Mushtaq Ali tournaments. They are expected to bring much-needed new methods and plans to advance state cricket.” Arvind Kapoor has played 15 Ranji matches, representing Uttar Pradesh from 1992 to 1994 and Railways from 1995 to 1998, scoring 443 runs and taking two wickets. In List A cricket, he played four matches for Uttar Pradesh and 15 for Railways, accumulating 328 runs and 13 wickets. Under his mentorship, the Meerut Mavericks clinched the title in the second season and finished as runners-up in the third season of the UPT20 league. Mohammad Amir Khan, a seasoned wicketkeeper for Uttar Pradesh, has played 65 Ranji Trophy matches, achieving 213 dismissals, including 196 catches and 17 stumpings. He has also participated in 26 List A matches. As a coach, Khan led the Uttar Pradesh team to victories in the Under-23 One Day Trophy, Under-19 Cooch Behar Trophy, and Under-14 Central Zone tournaments. Talking to TOI, Arvind Kapoor said, “I was a member of the junior selection committee for three years and served as its chairman for four years (2016-17 and 2017-18). After a break, I was chairman of the senior selection committee (2020-21, 2021-22). The current players grew up under my guidance. I know them well and will ensure there is no communication gap between the players and me, so we can produce good results together.” “This is a very big responsibility, and I am thankful to the UPCA for acknowledging my earlier contributions. Many current UP players in Ranji and IPL were selected during my junior selection tenure. I hope we will achieve good results in all three formats this season,” he added.