Auckland will appoint an interim coach for the remainder of the domestic first-class season after the departure of Mark O'Donnell to join the New Zealand squad.
O'Donnell will be assistant coach to Andy Moles for the duration of the Indian tour, which begins with the first of twoTwenty20 internationals in Christchurch tomorrow night.
With the State Championship final starting on April 5 - two days after the third and final test against India in Wellington - O'Donnell's work with Auckland is over for the season, even if they make the final.
And with his contract ending this season, it might mark the finish of his time in the provincial job.
"It's a great opportunity for Mark," Auckland chief executive Andrew Eade said last night.
"Andy and Mark have been great mates for a long time, they work well together."
Eade said O'Donnell's strengths of technical nous, a "superb" work ethic and ability to work with players made him ideal for the job.
Auckland will settle on a caretaker coach until the end of the season later this week.
Two leading candidates are former test opener Matt Horne and Paul Strang, the former Zimbabwe test legspinner who has been in Auckland for several years. They have both been involved with the Auckland A team this season.
Eade said no decisions would be taken on next season until the finish of the current campaign, in which Auckland sit third on 11 points - 14 behind Central Districts, and seven adrift of second-placed Wellington, with four rounds remaining before the final.
Meanwhile, Moles sang India's praises yesterday, labelling them the No 1 side in the world "in all facets".
"You look at the way they've played over the last 18 months. They've gone round the world and at home and played very good cricket. They've some very experienced players, they're coached really well and they're coming at a time which will be a really good test for us. It's really exciting for New Zealand cricket."
Moles also welcomes big allrounder Jacob Oram back into the national setup, after he had missed the Chappell Hadlee series in Australia and a large part of the West Indies tour earlier in the summer with a calf injury.
"He's one of those explosive players who can win a game. Any New Zealand team with Jacob playing has the capacity to win."
He hoped Oram would be ready to return to bowling for the start of the ODI series against India, in Napier next Tuesday, but will play as a specialist batsman in the Twenty20 series.
