RCB review contracts of Hesson, Bangar; franchise may part ways with coaches
Bengaluru, Jul 16: Royal Challengers Bangalore may affect a revamp in their coaching staff as the franchise is reviewing the contract of director of cricket operations Mike Hesson and head coach Sanjay Bangar.
In general, the IPL coaching staff contracts are up for renewal in September, and the RCB indicated that their performance will be closely deliberated before arriving at a decision.
"Their contract with RCB is still intact. The team is still under the process of review. We will come back if any announcement is made," the franchise said in a statement.
Bangar and Hesson were not immediately available for reaction about the status of their contract with the RCB.
Hesson joined the Royal Challengers in 2019 after the club ended up beneath the pile that season. Bangar was promoted as head coach ahead of IPL 2022 after Simon Katich decided to part ways with the club for personal reasons.
Even though RCB could not land an IPL title, they had a good run during the tenure of Hesson first as coach and then as the director of cricket operations.
In his first season in charge in 2020, Hesson guided RCB to fourth in the league stage but they lost the Eliminator to the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
In the IPL 2021, RCB finished third in the table but once again lost the Eliminator, this time to Kolkata Knight Riders.
In the following IPL, RCB were fourth in the league table but lost Qualifier 2 to Rajasthan Royals. However, they failed to enter the playoffs during the IPL 2023.
Hesson was also in charge of Royal Challengers Bangalore women team during the inaugural Women's Premier League. The Smriti Mandhana-led RCB finished fourth in the five-team league.
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Noida International Airport appoints Nitu Samra as interim CEO
New Delhi (PTI): Noida International Airport on Friday announced the appointment of its Chief Financial Officer Nitu Samra as the interim Chief Executive Officer after authorities denied permission for foreign national Christoph Schnellmann to be at the helm.
"This change follows directions issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) that the Chief Executive Officer of an airport in India is required to be an Indian national," NIA said in a statement.
Samra will replace Schnellmann, a Swiss national who has led Noida International Airport (NIA) as the CEO since August 2020.
The regulatory issue related to the requirement of having an Indian national as CEO has been delaying the start of commercial operations of the airport, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28.
Schnellmann will join the airport's Board of Directors as Executive Vice Chairman. In this role, he will continue to support the project and its transition to operations, the statement said.
With immediate effect, NIA said Samra has been appointed as the CEO on an interim basis until the Board of Directors can conclude a formal selection process.
Samra has been serving as the CFO since October 2021 and was closely involved in the airport’s development journey, overseeing financial stewardship, governance, and strategic planning during a key phase of the project, the statement added.
NIA will be operated by Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd (YIAPL), a subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, under a public-private partnership.
Originally scheduled to commence passenger services in September 2024, NIA is being developed in four phases, along with a dedicated cargo terminal. It received an aerodrome license from the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in March.
YIAPL Chairman Daniel Bircher said that since the inauguration of the airport by the Prime Minister, the goal was to enable the start of operations as early as possible.
"This management change brings the airport into compliance with Bureau of Civil Aviation Security requirements while maintaining continuity in the airport’s leadership team. The newly structured team will support a smooth transition into operations, guided by clear and transparent governance and a strong corporate culture," he said.
On March 28, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said commercial flight operations from the airport would start in the next 45 to 60 days.
Among the largest greenfield airport projects in the country, NIA will initially have a capacity to handle 12 million passengers per annum.
Once fully developed, the airport will have a total passenger handling capacity of 70 million.
The first phase of NIA has been developed at an investment of around Rs 11,200 crore. 'DXN' is the code for the airport.
The airport features a 3,900-metre runway capable of handling wide-body aircraft, along with modern navigation systems, including Instrument Landing System (ILS) and advanced airfield lighting.
The peak handling capacity in the first phase will be 30 flights per hour.
In the first phase, there will be 28 aircraft stands, and the projected cargo capacity is around 2.5 lakh tonnes.
Terminal 1 of the airport is spread across 1,37,985 square metres with 48 check-in counters. Over 40 acres of land have been earmarked for developing MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) facilities at the airport.
