Former India all-rounder Singh named as new coach of UAE team

Former Indian all-rounder Robin Singh has been appointed as the new coach of the UAE after the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) sacked Dougie Brown on Wednesday.

The 56-year-old, who had represented India in one Test and 136 ODIs between 1989 and 2001, will hold the post of Director of Cricket.

Singh, known for his tight fielding and his batting lower down the order, replaces Brown who was appointed as coach in May 2017, was at the helm during a tumultuous last few months when the team was hit by the fixing scandal.

A few senior players, including skipper Mohammed Naveed, were suspended by the ICC just before the T20 World Cup qualifiers but UAE managed to qualify for the playoffs.

Brown also had to handle the selection duties on his own after the selection panel was disbanded, picking the team for the World Cup League 2 games.

Singh was associated with the IPL side Mumbai Indians, Caribbean Premier League’s Barbados Tridents since 2013 and also had coaching stints with Abu Dhabi T10 League, first with Kerala Kings and then Northern Warriors.

The former all-rounders has coached the India U-19 and ‘A’ teams and also served as the fielding coach of the senior team.

Singh was known for his agile fielding and pinch-hitting during his playing days.

He scored 2,336 runs in One Day Internationals at an average of 25.95 with one hundred and nine fifties.