4 days before Ranji opener, UTCA names new coach

On October 6, the UCTA had officially revealed the squad, but didn’t announce the names of the support staff. On Wednesday, the UTCA officially announced the entire squad— when The Tribune queried about the coach’s appointment and if a training camp was held before the start of the season.

The Chandigarh side is scheduled to travel to Mumbai to play its opening fixture of the Ranji Trophy, which begins on October 11.

“The team will be supported by a six-member staff. Amit Kumar will be the team manager while Karan Dhawan will serve as video analyst and performance analyst. Aman Kumar has been appointed physiotherapist, Balaji Vishnu Choudhari will be the measurer and Vinay Singh will be the trainer,” read an official communique.

Just before the start of the Ranji season, former Head Coach Rajiv Nayyar shifted his allegiance to the DDCA where he has taken over as the chief coach of the U-19 team. This is not the first time Nayyar found a place in the DDCA setup. In 2023, while serving as a senior selector and former U-23 coach with the UTCA, he was also selected for the DDCA coaching panel. He subsequently joined the Delhi association before returning to Chandigarh cricket. Chandigarh will open its campaign at the Wankhede Stadium, against multiple-time champions Mumbai, followed by their match against Haryana in Rohtak from October 18. The side will then host Himachal Pradesh from October 26, followed by another home tie against Tamil Nadu. In Jaipur, the side will face Rajasthan from January 17, 2027, before hosting Railways in a crucial match from January 24. The side will then travel to Dehradun to face Uttarakhand from February 1 in their last league game.