Wright could be next academy coach

John Wright, the former New Zealand opener and India coach, is strongly tipped to become Tim Nielsen's replacement as the head coach at the Centre of Excellence. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Wright was a late entrant in the race for the Brisbane-based role.

The paper said that two weeks ago, Cricket Australia (CA) had trimmed their list down to Trevor Bayliss, the New South Wales mentor, and Tim Coyle, who guided Tasmania to the Pura Cup this year. However, Bayliss has reportedly dropped out of the race so he can stay with the Blues, while Coyle was crossed off the list last week.

Wright was spotted in Brisbane speaking to CA officials around the time Coyle was eliminated. If he is given the nod, he will also take over as the coach of Australia A.

Wright coached Kent from 1997 to 2000 and India from 2000 to 2005. He was considered a candidate for the vacant Pakistan and Sri Lanka positions but has apparently ruled himself out of the race to replace Tom Moody at Sri Lanka.