Maj. Maniam had built a reputation for himself as an excellent administrator for the coaching set up in Malaysia, where he was before the Indian Exchequer was burdened with his pay of US$2500/- per month. His efforts did pave the way for good players to emerge from Malaysia, but contrary to popular belief, 

Saurav Ghosal was self motivated, and coached by Dalip Tripathi, as is Ramit Tandon who SRFI is eyeing for poaching. A. I. Singh produced Harinder Sandhu, taking him from beginner level to winning India's first Scottish title in boys category and Australian Runner Up positions. Since moving to Chennai, Harinder has only basked in past glory. We all know that Sunil Verma has been the coach, mentor and the person responsible for Sandeep Jangra making the top grade. Sandeep's coaching plan in Chennai was short lived as he took a faster train back home than the one to Chennai. The less said about Parthiban, albeit age controversy etc, the better. Any shadow of doubt about the coaching attraction Maniam might provide is wiped out by the fact that India's best Squash player Joshna Chinappa has chosen to train abroad rather than in her hometown.

Notwithstanding this, Ramachandran, in an effort to improve his image in world Squash, needed a man of reputation to prop it up. So he recruited Maj. Maniam for that job, under the façade of 'Consultant Coach'. Since then, Maniam has conducted only one meaningless coaching clinic outside Chennai, and besides that has not even stepped out of the mecca of how-not-to run- Squash i.e. Chennai. No player outside Chennai has benefited from his presence, and even the ones imported to Chennai are confused on whom to give credit to for whatever performance they might have- since SRFI needs them to say something nice about Cyrus Poncha and justify his presence as a National Coach- his abilities being highly questionable. Maniam meanwhile serves as a link to Ramachandran and world Squash. In return, he enjoys Indian hospitality and is happy in his retirement mode. He is happy to be aloof from the turmoil in Indian Squash, is non-committal, and only expresses sympathy when controversial issues are raised with him. The primary question is- what is he doing here anyway?

With a strong track record as an able administrator established while in Malaysia, it was reasonable to expect that Maniam would bring together and strengthen the coaching setup in India. Nothing of the sort has happened, and there is no integrated coaching programme in place. The pathway for players to move up from beginner to PSA level remains what it always was- start learning the game on your own, make a mark without any support from SRFI, get victimized by the powers that be in Chennai, and finally get poached- migrate from wherever you are to Chennai if you want to benefit from their facility and setup. Maniam has failed completely to change this 'pathway' or foster confidence in upcoming players. As a consultant coach, he has failed to address, or get addressed, basic ningling issues of coaching, age fudging, team selections, training camps location and convenience of players to attend them.

His strong belief that “There Is No Sport, Without Competition” has helped in developing the Interschool Tournament at Khar Gymkhana into a most sought after event that children prepare for every year. His strong financial acumen and organizational skills will go a long way in supporting the cause at Indian Squash Professionals.