``They (the managing committee) felt there was need for a change,'' MCA joint secretary Prof Ratnakar Shetty said.

The MCA instituted a seven-member committee comprising former Test stars Sunil Gavaskar, Ajit Wadekar, Sandeep Patil, Dilip Sardesai Suru Nayak, Milind Rege and Subhash Bandiwdekar among others with the powers to select a new Ranji Trophy coach for the 1998-99 season, Shetty said. The special committee were also asked to pick the coaches for under-19, under-16 and under-14 teams for the forthcoming season.

Among the likely successors to Sandhu are two of Sandhu's playing day colleagues -- former Test opener Lalchand Rajput and ex-Test wicket-keeperChandrakant Pandit.

Though Sandhu claimed that he had yet to receive any official letter from the MCA, the former Test seamer pledged his continued support to Mumbai cricket while speaking to Express Newsline this evening. ``I am a product of Mumbai cricket and even at this point of time my commitment to Mumbai cricket is of paramount importance. I will still work in the interests of Mumbai cricket, particularly the under-16 and under-19 cricket,'' he opined. ``Having said that, I have to grow as a coach and I will consider other offers that have come my way,'' he added with an obvious reference to the Punjab Cricket Association's (PCA) offer.

The PCA had shown keen interest in seeking the services of Sandhu after their dismal displays in the National Championships.

A marketing manager with the Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers in Mumbai, Sandhu disclosed he would taking a decision on the PCA offer after due consultations with his employers. While summing up his tenure with the Mumbai team,Sandhu said: ``I trained them in a scientific way. Most of the players are mature and they had given me more than 100 per cent while showing a keen willingness to work hard. The standard has been set. Care should now be taken that nobody punctures it.'' Quizzed if he could have been a victim of politics, Sandhu replied: ``I believe in performance. Groupism and club politics have no place in my dictionary. For me, being a coach meant being fair and neutral.'' However, the one factor that seemed to anger the Mumbai cricketing fraternity most was the loss against underdogs Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji semi-final last season. The first innings score of 90 all out standing out as a sore point.

Sandhu's stint with Mumbai began in 1996-97. It was a season in which Mumbai won the the Talim Shield (the symbol of supremacy in the four-day West Zone Ranji Trophy League), the West Zonal one-dayer, topped the Ranji Super League and then went on to become the eventual champions. It was a season in which they also won theWills Trophy. In 1977-98 -- Sandhu's second and last term as coach, Mumbai began the season by beating Rest of India to clinch the Irani Trophy. They then won the West Zone one-day league and the West Zone Ranji Trophy league. The National champions then stood second in the league before losing in the semi-finals what Sandhu was quoted as saying ``20 minutes of bad cricket in two seasons.'' But Sandhu had the satisfaction of seeing the side win the Wills Trophy and then create a sensation by guiding the team to a shock win over Mark Taylor's Australians.

Sandhu's statistics as a coach speaks for itself. But it could not save him his job. If the sacking was on pure cricketing merits, his successor has one hell of a task ahead.