Who is Mithun Manhas - Dhoni's ex-CSK teammate, Virat Kohli's captain in Ranji, and new contender for BCCI presidency

File Photo of Mohit Sharma and Mithun Manhas celebrating a wicket (BCCI Photo)

Mithun Manhas, the former captain of Delhi, is poised to become the first BCCI President without an India cap. The 45-year-old unexpectedly became the front-runner to assume the position on Saturday after a protracted and acrimonious meeting between the BCCI administrators in New Delhi.

Nominations are due on Sunday, and the selections will take place on September 28. But in the past five years, the BCCI president has consistently been chosen without any opposition.

Who is Mithun Manhas?

Manhas was one of the many middle-order hitters who ended up in the wrong era after making his professional debut in the 1997–98 season. Despite being a domestic powerhouse, Manhas was unable to establish himself on the Indian squad as he played during a phase when players like Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, and Sourav Ganguly were dominating.

But in the Delhi dressing room, the right-handed hitter was a source of inspiration. Manhas led the team for the most of the new millennium while star players like Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag were primarily away on national team action. In fact, during his early years in domestic cricket, the talismanic batter Virat Kohli also played under his captaincy.

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Manhas had his best season in 2007–08, leading Delhi to a Ranji Trophy victory and ending their protracted title drought. Even though Gambhir captained the team in both the semifinal and the championship game, Manhas finished the season with 921 runs at 57.56. The former hitter, who was born in Jammu but later relocated to the capital city in pursuit of cricketing chances, made his homecoming when he traveled from Delhi to Jammu and Kashmir in 2015 for the next Ranji Trophy season.

In all, Manhas participated in 157 first-class games, scoring 9714 runs at an average of over 45 and hit 27 hundreds. He scored 8554 runs in 206 Ranji Trophy innings. In addition, he has participated in 91 T20 matches for Delhi, scoring 1170 runs; and 130 List A games, scoring 4126 runs.

Additionally, Manhas has played for three Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises. Between 2008 to 2010, he began his career with the Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals). From 2011 to 2013, he played for the now-defunct Pune Warriors. In 2014, he played for the Chennai Super Kings under MS Dhoni. He scored 514 runs at 22.34 in 55 league games over seven seasons.

He made a comeback to the IPL in 2017 as Punjab's assistant coach before being selected the same year to serve as the batting consultant for the Bangladesh Under-19 squad. He joined RCB as their assistant coach after two years in the same capacity, and he is performing the same role for Gujarat Titans now.

As the director of cricket operations for the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA), Manhas also possesses administrative experience.