NEW DELHI - Former Australian coach Geoff Marsh has been asked to put forward a plan to improve India's domestic cricket.

"We wanted to have outside opinion. He has been coach, he has the background. We thought of picking his brain," Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president A.C. Muthiah told reporters. The plan is due by the end of March.

Marsh was appointed consultant to the Indian board last month after he pulled out of the race for the coach's job.

Muthiah said the board had decided not to consider for national selection players who skip domestic competitions without giving proper reasons.

This was to ensure that all top players take part in domestic tournaments to add competitive value to the matches.

The BCCI appointed former New Zealand skipper John Wright as the Indian team's first foreign coach late last year and named former Australian wicket-keeper Rodney Marsh as a consultant for the board's National Cricket Academy.

Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar said recently the BCCI should have considered former Indian players before giving the job to Marsh.

Muthiah said Gavaskar, who heads the board's technical committee, wanted the BCCI to clarify Marsh's role.

"Gavaskar wanted to know the role of Geoff Marsh. We explained it to him. In no way will it impinge on the authority of the technical committee," Muthiah said.

© 2001 AAP