He has agreed for a two-year term with us and will join the side on October 1," CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya said after a meeting with Malhotra at his office here.

56-year-old Malhotra thus replaces former India opener W V Raman who has now returned to his home side Tamil Nadu after a three-season stint with Bengal. A Level III coach, Malhotra briefly coached Team India in acting capacity when John Wright had gone to New Zealand ahead of a triangular series in Dhaka in 2003 besides coaching India 'A'.

A former national selector, Malhotra was a middle-order batsman and many had compared him with the legendary G R Viswanath. He had played seven Tests for India and in the 1980s also featured in 20 ODIs scoring 457 at an average of 30.47. He was also a member of 1985 World Series Championship-winning side in Australia.

A prolific run-getter at the domestic level, Malhotra held the record of most runs in the Ranji Trophy -- 7274 at an average of 52.54 with 18 centuries having played for Bengal and Haryana. His highest score was an unbeaten 258 for Bengal against Hyderabad in 1989-90 season.

Ashok Malhotra named Bengal coach Kolkata, July 22 (PTI) Former India batsman Ashok Malhotra was today named coach of Bengal senior cricket team. "We just finalised him as our coach for the upcoming season.

He has agreed for a two-year term with us and will join the side on October 1," CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya said after a meeting with Malhotra at his office here. 56-year-old Malhotra thus replaces former India opener W V Raman who has now returned to his home side Tamil Nadu after a three-season stint with Bengal.

A Level III coach, Malhotra briefly coached Team India in acting capacity when John Wright had gone to New Zealand ahead of a triangular series in Dhaka in 2003 besides coaching India 'A'. A former national selector, Malhotra was a middle-order batsman and many had compared him with the legendary G R Viswanath. He had played seven Tests for India and in the 1980s also featured in 20 ODIs scoring 457 at an average of 30.47.

He was also a member of 1985 World Series Championship-winning side in Australia. A prolific run-getter at the domestic level, Malhotra held the record of most runs in the Ranji Trophy -- 7274 at an average of 52.54 with 18 centuries having played for Bengal and Haryana. His highest score was an unbeaten 258 for Bengal against Hyderabad in 1989-90 season.u00a0