Ex-India all-rounder Robin Singh appointed UAE's director of cricket

Dubai: Former India all-rounder Robin Singh was on Wednesday appointed director of cricket of the United Arab Emirates, local media reported.

The 56-year-old’s appointment comes following the sacking of Dougie Brown as head coach, reports stated.

The Indian takes over at a time when the UAE’s national team is trying to recover from the fixing scandal that rocked their cricket last year, leading to the suspension of a few senior players, including captain Mohammed Naveed, and disbanding of the selection panel.

Without a selection committee, Brown was forced to pick the teams for the series against Scotland and the United States at home last December, and against Oman and Namibia in Muscat in January, for the World Cup League Two matches.

Singh, who had represented India in one Test and 136 ODIs between 1989 and 2001, has over the years made a name for himself in coaching.

He was associated with the Indian Premier League’s highly successful Mumbai Indians franchise, Caribbean Premier League’s Barbados Tridents since 2013 and T10 franchises in the T10 league here.

Singh, who was born in Princes Town, Trinidad, has also conducted coaching clinics in the UAE.

An agile fielder and a useful batting all-rounder with an ability to hit big shots, Singh scored 2236 runs in one-day internationals at an average of 25.95 and a best of 100.

He also picked up 69 wickets in the 50-over format with a best of 5/22.

Singh’s predecessor Brown departed after three years at the helm.