Sunil Joshi appointed Hyderabad coach

Sunil Joshi, the former India spinner, has been appointed the new head coach of Hyderabad, ending his 19-year domestic career. Joshi played in last year's Ranji Trophy semi-final, which Karnataka lost to Baroda, but said he is ready for the next phase in his career.

"I have been in talks with the Hyderabad Cricket Association for a while and they offered me the coach's position," Joshi told the Hindu. It fits in well with my career and I am ready for this transition. I am qualified and have done my Level II and III courses at the National Cricket Academy and have also gained the Level II certificate from the England and Wales Cricket Board."

Hyderabad had a poor Ranji Trophy season last year. They were bowled out for 21 in their opening game of the season, when Rajasthan's Deepak Chahar took 8 for 10 on debut, a result that saw several heads roll. They recovered somewhat from that point to finish fourth in their group, above Jharkhand and Tripura, and Joshi said he hopes he can "help the team improve its performance and qualify for the Elite section next year".

The 41-year-old Joshi took 41 wickets in 15 Tests and 69 wickets in 69 ODIs for India. The highlight of his international career was a remarkable spell of 10-6-6-5 in a one-dayer against South Africa. He was an integral part of the Karnataka state team since the 1992-93 season, having taken 615 first-class wickets at an average of 25.12 and a strike-rate of 62.1.

In the long run, Joshi said he would live to give back to Karnataka cricket. "I would love to nurture spinners at the State academy and also help Karnataka in whatever role is possible.