India wanted him, but they didn’t get him. It has just been announced that Andy Flower has renewed his contract with the ECB and will remain as England’s ‘Team Director’ i.e. the guy that does the fielding drills, picks the team, and designs team strategies (why they just can’t call him ‘England coach’ is anyone’s guess) for the foreseeable future.
After Duncan Fletcher was named as India Coach last week (see, the Indians can call a spade a spade) the announcement was somewhat inevitable. However, it’s still very good news. Flower has done a tip top job. We’ve won the Ashes, twice, and also the T20 World Cup. We won’t mention the other World Cup – the one which finished last month. It has been erased from our collective memories.
The ECB hasn’t released the exact terms of Flower’s new deal, but it’s understood he requested a clause that enables him to skip some tours in order to take a well earned breather now and again. It seems that Team Directors, or whatever you want to call them, can suffer from burnout too – something which seems a little odd. If I was England coach I’d sit in beautifully air conditioned dressing rooms all day, travel first class at every opportunity, and make the plebs, I mean the players, toil in Sri Lankan heat waves and get herded onto Ryan Air flights. But that’s just me.
This opt out clause raises some interesting questions. Which tours will Flower be allowed to miss? Presumably he’ll turn up in the West Indies (or anywhere else with beautiful beaches) and happily visit South Africa (where the beer and wine is good) but avoid Bangladesh, where purchasing a cold one is as tricky as bowling to Tamin Iqbal.
Furthermore, who would coach England in Flower’s absence? Perhaps Alastair Cook could become England’s first player/manager? His boyish good looks, fondness for shaving meticulously, squeaky clean public image and ability to charm television interviewers make him suitable for any role. I wouldn’t be surprised if Cook becomes chairman of the ECB, ICC, UN and/or Prime Minister in the coming years. However, this plan is probably impractical. If Flower takes a few weeks off, the team will probably be saddled with Graham Gooch.
The prospect of our Team Director skipping tours is somewhat disconcerting. Is it the thin edge of the wedge? Players already miss important games to attend the birth of babies, and bowlers now miss test series to undergo strength and conditioning programmes. We don’t have a problem with these things as such – it’s just that there’s a more sensible solution available i.e. create more sensible international schedules.
It’s sad that Flower, who is one of England’s most successful coaches, has such little faith in his employer’s scheduling abilities that he’s insisted his contract specifically guards against burnout. Unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like the treadmill of international cricket is going to slow down anytime soon.
James Morgan
England play Pakistan in early 2012 and I assume that this will take place in Abu Dhabi or Dubai. Would this not be a good opportunity to give a promising coach the chance to be in charge of the one day leg of the tour and then continue as assistant coach for the one day side? James – I know you are desperate to get Ashley Giles involved in the England team so this could be the opportunity.
Ashely Giles is my hero. Not. Robert Croft should have had every single one of his test caps ;-) Or is that just the Welshie in me talking?