Sri Lanka appoint Mickey Arthur as Head Coach, Grant Flower as Batting Coach

[Abdullah719]

Media Release

05th December, 2019

Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce the following ‘Coaching appointments’ made to the National team and also to the High Performance Center.

Mr. Mickey Arthur (John Michale Arthur)

Mickey Arthur assumed duties on the 04th December 2019 as the ‘Consultant Head Coach’ of the National Team.

Arthur, a former first class cricketer has held several international coaching assignments, before taking over the Sri Lankan role.

He has coached the National teams of South Africa (2005 to 2010), Australia (2011 to 2013) and most recently, the Pakistan, thus helping the respective teams to reach greater heights during his stints with those teams.

Mr. Grant Flower

Grant Flower joins Sri Lanka Cricket as the ‘National Batting Coach’ and the Head Coach of the ‘A’ team.

He will join SLC, with effect from 06th December, 2019.

Flower, a former Zimbabwean International Cricketer has functioned as the Batting Coach of Zimbabwe (2010 to 2014) and Pakistan (2014 to 2019) National teams, prior to joining Sri Lanka Cricket.

Mr. David Sekar

David Sekar joins in as the ‘National Fast Bowling Coach’, effective from 08th December, 2019.

Sekar, has worked on several international assignments, such as the Assistant Coach of the Australian National team (2016 to 2019), Head Coach of the Australian team, during its India tour in 2017. He has also functioned as the Head Coach of the Melbourne Renegades (2015 to 2016).

Mr. Shane McDermott

Shane McDermott joins Sri Lanka Cricket as the ‘National fielding Coach,’ effective from 2nd December, 2019.

McDermott’s most recent stint has been with the South Australian Cricket Association as a High Performance Coach, while he has held ‘specialists’ positions (Batting and fielding) with the Bangladesh Cricket Board and Cricket Australia.

Mr. Jerome Jayaratne

Jerome Jayaratne was appointed as the Chief Cricket Operations Officer of the SLC with effect from 15th November, 2019.

Jayaratne, a Career Coach, previously held the position of Chief Operations Officer at the SLC. He also functioned as the interim coach of the national team on a number of overseas tours and most recently served as a consultant to the National Team.

Mr. Tim (Timothy) McCaskill

Tim McCaskill joins as the Head of National Cricket Development, effective from 06th January, 2020.

Before joining Sri Lanka Cricket, McCaskill was the High Performance Manager of Cricket Victoria (2007 to 2019) and has also been the Coach of the Melbourne Renegades (2012 to 2016), apart from several other club and state level engagements.

http://cricket.lk/2019/12/sri-lanka-crickets-new-coaching-appointments/

 

[Hawkeye]

Get ready for "We're a proud team and we hate losing".

Also,

Grant Flower is another person who was getting paid millions for doing nothing. Our batting regressed massively under him.

Our batsmen forgot how to play at home, let alone away.

I wonder how come this duo managed to convince SL to hire them. That too together. Anyways, all the best!

 

[Khan12]

Hopefully he beats us at home. So we can get rid of shameless misbah and see who we have kicked out.

 

[Hawkeye]

Hopefully he beats us at home. So we can get rid of shameless misbah and see who we have kicked out.

Haha, I've never seen a person hate someone this much, that they want their country to lose.

 

[Mesozoic]

How fitting it would if Mickey beats Misbah in his first series !

 

[Rayyman]

Misbah vs Mickey

v

 

[Mesozoic]

Get ready for "We're a proud team and we hate losing".

Also,

Grant Flower is another person who was getting paid millions for doing nothing. Our batting regressed massively under him.

Our batsmen forgot how to play at home, let alone away.

I wonder how come this duo managed to convince SL to hire them. That too together. Anyways, all the best!

What are you talking about ?

Pak batting improved massively under Flower and Mickey. They changed the playing style of the team from "90's style batting" to modern day batting. Finally, you guys are crossing that 330 mark regularly.

I'm saying this as a neutral. Not some Mickey ***** or a Misbah hater, but you don't know how big a mistake it was to sack Mickey and get Misbah.

 

[Khan12]

Haha, I've never seen a person hate someone this much, that they want their country to lose.

Never have i ever seen a ****** like you, I hate him according to you, i give him the due respect for helping us from 2010s scandal. That doesn't mean we brush aside him being the worst odi batmen ever, losing us 2 world cups, allergic to youngsters, playing his friends, playing well past his time, begging all the PSL team to sign him, unqualified and holding 3 positions, his obsession with old and rubbish players like himself, being a puppet of PCB, having a loser mentality, barking against young players, losing to Zimbabwe, recommending Azhar has captain for odi when he won't even select him, making him captain when he's averaging less then tailenders. Embarassing himself in t20s before retiring just like in Tests, Pathetic selections, imran and ifti last played when misbah was the captain, what a coincidence they play the first game as soon as misbah becomes the coach.

Please answer them then i will become a fan boy like you.

 

[Fahdi]

What are you talking about ?

Pak batting improved massively under Flower and Mickey. They changed the playing style of the team from "90's style batting" to modern day batting. Finally, you guys are crossing that 330 mark regularly.

I'm saying this as a neutral. Not some Mickey ***** or a Misbah hater, but you don't know how big a mistake it was to sack Mickey and get Misbah.

We made big strides in LOI batting for sure under Mickey and Grant partnership.

Also Mickey gave us Babar the test batsman, no one can take that away from him. People wanted Babar dropped from the team after his first 10 tests but Mickey stuck with him resisting pressure from fans and experts alike. Credit to Inzimam for that as well I guess.

Apart from that though there weren't too many great things about Mickey's coaching stint in test cricket. Our performances weren't great and he just couldn't embrace the formula for cricket in the UAE. The fact that Misbah and Younis retired and the two experienced batsmen who were supposed to replace them also went into decline didn't help either, especially Azhar who went from a top class batsman to a tail-ender outside of Asia.

 

[Slim]

Get ready for "We're a proud team and we hate losing".

Also,

Grant Flower is another person who was getting paid millions for doing nothing. Our batting regressed massively under him.

Our batsmen forgot how to play at home, let alone away.

I wonder how come this duo managed to convince SL to hire them. That too together. Anyways, all the best!

Buddy, you have no clue what you are talking about.

Under Mickey, we managed 300+ scores more than we could manage under the likes of the axis of incompetence.

We improved massively in fielding. We won ICC silverware. We got to the number 1 position in t20Is. SRL did a great job by hiring a competent and capable coach.

Meanwhile, we are stuck with your favorites - the axis of incompetence.

 

[RainStopsPlay]

M.Arthur with hands tied, eyes blindfolded and mouth stitched is still 100 times >>>>> Misbah! As much I like Arthur, I hate him for coaching the Pak in 2017 to win against Ind in ICC tournament. He deserves all the respect for just that one greatest achievement!

 

[TeymurBlake]

Chance for a win for Mickey Arthur.

 

[topspin]

Get ready for "We're a proud team and we hate losing".

Also,

Grant Flower is another person who was getting paid millions for doing nothing. Our batting regressed massively under him.

Our batsmen forgot how to play at home, let alone away.

I wonder how come this duo managed to convince SL to hire them. That too together. Anyways, all the best!

There's a reason why I hold more respect for controversial cricket journalists/ex-players and etc, who bash certain Pakistan cricketers (and management) 24/7 to serve their agendas like yourself.

Unlike you, they do it to put food on the table for their families, whereas you do it for free because you're such a cheap individual.

I know you're not a professional journalist because your English doesn't meet the standard of working proficiency, as evident from that second sentence. So all you will ever be is a low life free PR agent, who will always be exposed for holding Misbah's interests above Pakistan cricket.

 

[Amjid Javed]

I wonder how long before SL regress under Mickey and Flower in test cricket.

 

[topspin]

Never have i ever seen a ****** like you, I hate him according to you, i give him the due respect for helping us from 2010s scandal. That doesn't mean we brush aside him being the worst odi batmen ever, losing us 2 world cups, allergic to youngsters, playing his friends, playing well past his time, begging all the PSL team to sign him, unqualified and holding 3 positions, his obsession with old and rubbish players like himself, being a puppet of PCB, having a loser mentality, barking against young players, losing to Zimbabwe, recommending Azhar has captain for odi when he won't even select him, making him captain when he's averaging less then tailenders. Embarassing himself in t20s before retiring just like in Tests, Pathetic selections, imran and ifti last played when misbah was the captain, what a coincidence they play the first game as soon as misbah becomes the coach.

Please answer them then i will become a fan boy like you.

Hopefully he beats us at home. So we can get rid of shameless misbah and see who we have kicked out.

Thank you for exposing the inaccuracies in his post.

I will also be supporting Sri Lanka as well. Misbah and his fans need this reality check. Perhaps this is a chance for the PCB to finally smell the coffee.

 

[AFM]

"Hey Pakistan, always pick Asad Technique"

 

[Khan12]

Thank you for exposing the inaccuracies in his post.

I will also be supporting Sri Lanka as well. Misbah and his fans need this reality check. Perhaps this is a chance for the PCB to finally smell the coffee.

Exactly, We want Pakistan to become better. Losing this will definitely help us in long term provided he gets kicked out. I have been following Pakistan cricket since 2003. Never have lost interest or missed a game, was losing interest when he was our captain and now he's making it a certainty. Imagine staying up till around 5 and just getting an hour or so sleep before going work in the morning and then watching this shameless person selecting the likes of azhar, ifti, imran and friends.

 

[Hawkeye]

Never have i ever seen a ****** like you, I hate him according to you, i give him the due respect for helping us from 2010s scandal. That doesn't mean we brush aside him being the worst odi batmen ever, losing us 2 world cups, allergic to youngsters, playing his friends, playing well past his time, begging all the PSL team to sign him, unqualified and holding 3 positions, his obsession with old and rubbish players like himself, being a puppet of PCB, having a loser mentality, barking against young players, losing to Zimbabwe, recommending Azhar has captain for odi when he won't even select him, making him captain when he's averaging less then tailenders. Embarassing himself in t20s before retiring just like in Tests, Pathetic selections, imran and ifti last played when misbah was the captain, what a coincidence they play the first game as soon as misbah becomes the coach.

Please answer them then i will become a fan boy like you.

Haha, there's a reason I enjoy reading your posts.

You're unlike the other Mickey Arthur fan boys, there's something in your posts that is of entertainment substance. Seeing PAK progress in cricket will be more enjoyable knowing there are people who are burning!

 

[Khan12]

Haha, there's a reason I enjoy reading your posts.

You're unlike the other Mickey Arthur fan boys, there's something in your posts that is of entertainment substance. Seeing PAK progress in cricket will be more enjoyable knowing there are people who are burning!

So you can't answer as expected. Another loss for misbah fan tbh they are used to it as their hero was known as a loser.

 

[Hawkeye]

I wonder how long before SL regress under Mickey and Flower in test cricket.

SL and BD are the only boards that can be conned by these artists.

Playing to the gallery is their forte.

There's a reason Mickey Arthur has been fired from every major coaching job in the past few years. Everyone has had enough of him.

 

[topspin]

I wonder how long before SL regress under Mickey and Flower in test cricket.

It wouldn't surprise me if they beat Pakistan to be honest.

 

[emranabbas]

Thank you for exposing the inaccuracies in his post.

I will also be supporting Sri Lanka as well. Misbah and his fans need this reality check. Perhaps this is a chance for the PCB to finally smell the coffee.

Count me in 4 I will also be supporting Sri Lanka

 

[SensiblePakFan]

Misbah about to revive himself by beating arthur at home. Interesting times.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

Wow. It's sad to see so much fake fans who don't support the team at all times. Even though I didn't like Mickey I always supported the team.

 

[topspin]

Count me in 4 I will also be supporting Sri Lanka

Has to be done. If Misbah gets a win here, his role will be secure for a significant period of time.

 

[Hawkeye]

Wow. It's sad to see so much fake fans who don't support the team at all times. Even though I didn't like Mickey I always supported the team.

Ignore the trolls. It's a free world. These random anonymous keyboard warriors can choose to hate or support whoever they want. If they support Mickey over the country or the team, so be it.

 

[Sultanofswing]

That's how britishers ruled us.

 

[Shazzam]

Time to support Sri-Lanka this series. This is basically Pakistan team from Karachi.

 

[Titan24]

Never thought I will see fans divided between two coaches that much that supporters of the ex coach actually want Pakistan to loose to prove their point. I mean what can I say, people talk about personal likes and dislikes in cricket, in politics and other things in Pakistan should realize this starts from people of the country who let their ego and their liking towards someone become bigger than the country.

Hopefully people will realize that it isnt only the people at helm of affairs rather a major part of our population from where those people come from is like that and they dont see error on their part but can talk about others like they are all that is wrong without realizing they are part of that wrong.

Even if Mickey was our coach or Misbah, I personally only wish for Pakistan to win and I thought others were also the same without a doubt in my mind. Turns out I was wrong, sometimes liking towards someone or hate towards someone can be bigger than the country itself.

 

[Hawkeye]

Never thought I will see fans divided between two coaches that much that supporters of the ex coach actually want Pakistan to loose to prove their point. I mean what can I say, people talk about personal likes and dislikes in cricket, in politics and other things in Pakistan should realize this starts from people of the country who let their ego and their liking towards someone become bigger than the country.

Hopefully people will realize that it isnt only the people at helm of affairs rather a major part of our population from where those people come from is like that and they dont see error on their part but can talk about others like they are all that is wrong without realizing they are part of that wrong.

Even if Mickey was our coach or Misbah, I personally only wish for Pakistan to win and I thought others were also the same without a doubt in my mind. Turns out I was wrong, sometimes liking towards someone or hate towards someone can be bigger than the country itself.

Yep.

This indicates their intellect and where their loyalties lie. It's clearly not cricket-related, lack of cricketing sense can be seen in this group.

 

[Shazzam]

M.Arthur with hands tied, eyes blindfolded and mouth stitched is still 100 times >>>>> Misbah! As much I like Arthur, I hate him for coaching the Pak in 2017 to win against Ind in ICC tournament. He deserves all the respect for just that one greatest achievement!

Truer words have never been said. Under Mickey we got a dream tournament win. For any Pakistan fan it felt like a great fairy tale tournament. Under Misbah we wont get such wins. I’d take that champions trophy win over Misbah’s whole career. I hope Sri-Lanka wins so this guy whose ruining our cricket goes for good.

 

[Khan12]

Never thought I will see fans divided between two coaches that much that supporters of the ex coach actually want Pakistan to loose to prove their point. I mean what can I say, people talk about personal likes and dislikes in cricket, in politics and other things in Pakistan should realize this starts from people of the country who let their ego and their liking towards someone become bigger than the country.

Hopefully people will realize that it isnt only the people at helm of affairs rather a major part of our population from where those people come from is like that and they dont see error on their part but can talk about others like they are all that is wrong without realizing they are part of that wrong.

Even if Mickey was our coach or Misbah, I personally only wish for Pakistan to win and I thought others were also the same without a doubt in my mind. Turns out I was wrong, sometimes liking towards someone or hate towards someone can be bigger than the country itself.

Stop saying ex coach is kicked out that why we are not supporting Pakistan. Don't make up theories. Would have taken anyone other then shameless misbah and few other of our ex cricketers i.e aqib javed etc. This rubbish got no qualifications and the reason he got the job is due to being a puppet of PCB.

We support Pakistan hence we want them to lose so we can be successful in long term.

 

[Shazzam]

Stop saying ex coach is kicked out that why we are not supporting Pakistan. Don't make up theories. Would have taken anyone other then shameless misbah and few other of our ex cricketers i.e aqib javed etc. This rubbish got no qualifications and the reason he got the job is due to being a puppet of PCB.

We support Pakistan hence we want them to lose so we can be successful in long term.

Indeed will always support Pakistan but not when its being corrupted like this.

 

[Rana]

Best of luck to them. Congratulations for acquiring the services of two professional and experienced coaches!

 

[topspin]

Never thought I will see fans divided between two coaches that much that supporters of the ex coach actually want Pakistan to loose to prove their point. I mean what can I say, people talk about personal likes and dislikes in cricket, in politics and other things in Pakistan should realize this starts from people of the country who let their ego and their liking towards someone become bigger than the country.

Hopefully people will realize that it isnt only the people at helm of affairs rather a major part of our population from where those people come from is like that and they dont see error on their part but can talk about others like they are all that is wrong without realizing they are part of that wrong.

Even if Mickey was our coach or Misbah, I personally only wish for Pakistan to win and I thought others were also the same without a doubt in my mind. Turns out I was wrong, sometimes liking towards someone or hate towards someone can be bigger than the country itself.

It has nothing to do with "proving a point". I can safely say that 70-80% (if not more) of Pakistan fans have no faith in Misbah and want him fired.

Misbah was responsible for Mickey's ousting to serve his self-interests and although this is completely unethical, I would have no issues if he was delivering for the greater good of Pakistan cricket. However, the team is doing a lot worse than we saw under Mickey.

I posted earlier in the week that Misbah should be accountable for not learning from the mistakes that he made during his playing career, as captain of the side that toured Australia in 2016/17. The three major examples of this are:

1. Playing Yasir Shah despite the humiliation he had experienced in the last tour.

2. He vouched for Azhar Ali to be captain of the ODI side and it turned out to be a poor appointment, especially when you consider he wasn't even a regular feature of the ODI squad, let alone in the eleven.

But, now somehow he feels compelled to have him captain the side, even though his record with the bat over the last two years leaves much to be desired.

3. The selection of Imran Khan.

When he toured Australia last time round, his bowling was so harmless, he allowed Warner to reach his ton before lunch, in one of the tests they had played.

Not to forget also, Mickey's Pakistan whitewashed a full strength Sri Lanka team in the last quarter of 2017. Two years later, the side's fortunes are completed reversed, as Misbah's Pakistan side got whitewashed at home against a heavily depleted Sri Lanka side.

Based on the above, how can any rational individual hold any hope for Misbah?

The problem with him winning this series (or even avoiding defeat) is that he will probably get a long run, as the PCB are slow to react to these alarm bells right in front of their faces. As a result this will affect Pakistan's progress in the long run.

There is no greater reality check for the PCB to taste if Misbah's predecessor beats him at Pakistan's own backyard with a weaker team on paper. I believe this could be what it takes for them to wake up and smell the coffee.

 

[Titan24]

We support Pakistan hence we want them to lose so we can be successful in long term.

Unfortunately its not your support for Pakistan cricket team rather a hate for one person. If thats your way to support Pakistan than there would be people wanting Pak to loose under Mickey so that torture of loosing every test series in last two years (Except against Aus) would end and same trend will continue in the future irrespective of who is the coach. This shouldnt be like this.

If you arent gonna support Pakistan team due to a man behind it and suppose other fans are also taking the same path then whoever is appointed as a coach there will always be people against him and their hatred against one person will always be bigger than Pakistan.

There is no reason for any true fan to not support his team, everything he says is just an excuse which he/she is gonna use again and again in future as well. Misbah, Mickey or any to other tom dick or harry shouldnt be the reason for any real fan to stop supporting Pakistan.

Its just my opinion, you can continue your journey towards your righteous path.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

Haha, I've never seen a person hate someone this much, that they want their country to lose.

Same as u love someone to be in power even if ur country loses every series get hammered right left and centre.

 

[Titan24]

There is no greater reality check for the PCB to taste if Misbah's predecessor beats him at Pakistan's own backyard with a weaker team on paper. I believe this could be what it takes for them to wake up and smell the coffee.

And what if Misbah remains even if we loose to Srl as well, then you will wish Pak to loose the next series as well and then next and next and the cycle will continue without any guarantee that next coach will be better than Misbah or Mickey and we will actually start to win anything other than minnows and one odd home test series against Aus?

 

[Kroll]

Ignore the trolls. It's a free world. These random anonymous keyboard warriors can choose to hate or support whoever they want. If they support Mickey over the country or the team, so be it.

They're only directing their ire towards the man who puts himself before the country: the man who retired from playing wherever and whenever he wanted regardless of age or performance, the man who shamelessly kicked out a national coach so he could take up all the roles himself, the man who plays a brand of cricket that puts everyone to sleep, the man who plays his friends instead of other deserving candidates, the list goes on.

There's a reason why 80% of members on these boards are opposed to his reign. This level of opposition is unprecedented as in the past, who was coach, chief selector(s) etc was never such a big issue as it is now.

These guys have had enough and don't accept mediocrity. They should be applauded for speaking out against the mafia we have in place now.

 

[Khan12]

Unfortunately its not your support for Pakistan cricket team rather a hate for one person. If thats your way to support Pakistan than there would be people wanting Pak to loose under Mickey so that torture of loosing every test series in last two years (Except against Aus) would end and same trend will continue in the future irrespective of who is the coach. This shouldnt be like this.

If you arent gonna support Pakistan team due to a man behind it and suppose other fans are also taking the same path then whoever is appointed as a coach there will always be people against him and their hatred against one person will always be bigger than Pakistan.

There is no reason for any true fan to not support his team, everything he says is just an excuse which he/she is gonna use again and again in future as well. Misbah, Mickey or any to other tom dick or harry shouldnt be the reason for any real fan to stop supporting Pakistan.

Its just my opinion, you can continue your journey towards your righteous path.

Is this guy qualified? Were there better options then him? The man selected plays his friends and oldies why don't you preach him this? Don't we have better players then his favorites and friends?. If he really loves Pakistan why does he select his friends he done it when he was the captain and now doing it again as a coach? Does he even support Pakistan. A guy who burned his kit. IF HE LOVES AND SUPPORTS PAKISTAN HE WOULDN'T HAVE ACCEPTED THIS JOB AS HE'S CLEARLY UNQUALIFIED FOR IT.

 

[MenInG]

Mickey Arthur speaking to the press in Sri Lanka today:

"It had been 3 very good years with Pakistan and I needed a little bit of time away and then the Sri Lankan job became available and I started discussions with Mr. De Silva and we spoke about me coming here; And the thing that attracted me most was that I looked at the talent that is available, and the key motivating factor is to coming to help these young players fulfill their potential, and the amount of talent 'we' have here is great"

"I sit here being the best coach I can possibly be; When I coached South Africa I was very young and we were a very young side finding our way in the game"

"I had five very good years there, I had 2 years with Australia, the first year was good but the second year wasnt that great"

"And then, I had three wonderful years with Pakistan - I loved every minute of working with those players because very much like the Sri Lankan players they were very humble boys, they had great values and to see them develop and perform to their potential was fantastic"

"The one thing I have learnt is to have a look and understand the culture first and foremost, and once you understand the culture and environment is to then to get it going in the direction you want"

"Pakistan, when I came in, were lagging behind the rest [in intensity/fitness], and we made it up and it was exciting to see those players develop and for players to start to understand how important that was in making them better players, and so it was a great journey to go on"

"No, the cricket language is pretty universal so when you say forward defense, every one knows what that is and you need to get better at that!"

"And I did learn a bit of Urdu, it took me 2 years but I could understand what was happening in the dressing room"

"I have worked with Grant Flower for three years, he is one of the best batting coaches in terms of knowledge and also in terms of work ethic and empathy he showed to the batsmen"

 

[Titan24]

Is this guy qualified? Were there better options then him? The man selected plays his friends and oldies why don't you preach him this? Don't we have better players then his favorites and friends?. If he really loves Pakistan why does he select his friends he done it when he was the captain and now doing it again as a coach? Does he even support Pakistan. A guy who burned his kit. IF HE LOVES AND SUPPORTS PAKISTAN HE WOULDN'T HAVE ACCEPTED THIS JOB AS HE'S CLEARLY UNQUALIFIED FOR IT.

Nobody can deny that his appointment was questionable on number grounds however, now that has happened we can just support the team. Many Indian fans werent happy with Ravi Shastri's appointment but they are still supporting their team.

 

[topspin]

And what if Misbah remains even if we loose to Srl as well, then you will wish Pak to loose the next series as well and then next and next and the cycle will continue without any guarantee that next coach will be better than Misbah or Mickey and we will actually start to win anything other than minnows and one odd home test series against Aus?

If Misbah loses to SL but retains his position, I would accept PCB won't act on his incompetence and accept we're stuck with him.

I've watched cricket since 1999 and I've never been this close to cease watching Pakistan cricket and I can promise you, there are many other fans you feel like this right now. Misbah ruined Pakistan's ODI team and I can't watch him to do it again but this time on a much bigger scale, as it would be across all formats.

So now that I've addressed your post, anything you have to say about those three mistakes he has repeated since the last tour of Australia? Can you not acknowledge that he simply isn't learning from his blunders?

 

[minamino]

As usual Pakistani media and YouTube channels attacking Mickey Arthur, Is it an unwritten rule that you can't coach anywhere after Pakistan?

 

[topspin]

Nobody can deny that his appointment was questionable on number grounds however, now that has happened we can just support the team. Many Indian fans werent happy with Ravi Shastri's appointment but they are still supporting their team.

Although Ravi Shashtri is a cheerleader, he lets Kohli get on with the business because he doesn't want to disrupt something that works.

India are perhaps the best team in the world (across formats), whilst Pakistan aren't even half as good as them, but somehow you feel the need to compare the sentiments of both sets of fans - like seriously bro??

 

[topspin]

They're only directing their ire towards the man who puts himself before the country: the man who retired from playing wherever and whenever he wanted regardless of age or performance, the man who shamelessly kicked out a national coach so he could take up all the roles himself, the man who plays a brand of cricket that puts everyone to sleep, the man who plays his friends instead of other deserving candidates, the list goes on.

There's a reason why 80% of members on these boards are opposed to his reign. This level of opposition is unprecedented as in the past, who was coach, chief selector(s) etc was never such a big issue as it is now.

These guys have had enough and don't accept mediocrity. They should be applauded for speaking out against the mafia we have in place now.

Indeed.

Over the 20 years I've watched the game, I have never come across a captain/coach for Pakistan to have ever face such level of opposition.

 

[zn426]

"Hey Pakistan, always pick Asad Technique"

Might as well pick Farooq Engineer while you're at it.

 

[Hasan123]

Misbah won't be going anywhere even if we lose this series. I think he will probably be coach till the World T20. So enough of the nonsense of fans wanting us to lose.


On the appointment of Mickey Arthur, I think he is a good developer of talent. I think he did good work with Babar and Imam. He knows how to improve players. But he had issues with tactical decisions. He has to understand this if he is to succeed in this role. One other thing that will be interesting is his relationship with the senior players. He had issues with senior players in his last 2 international jobs. Any such problems here and Sri Lanka won't hesitate in letting him go.

Always liked Sri Lankan cricket. Hope they do well in the future accept against Pakistan.

 

[Justcrazy]

Mickey biggest mistake I think was that he did not promote specialist spinners . Other than that there is no doubt he is far superior to Misbah as a coach.

 

[Etherealistic]

Sri Lanka might improve under Mickey Arthur. Andy Flower would have been a better choice than Grant Flower.

 

[Abdullah]

Never have i ever seen a ****** like you, I hate him according to you, i give him the due respect for helping us from 2010s scandal. That doesn't mean we brush aside him being the worst odi batmen ever, losing us 2 world cups, allergic to youngsters, playing his friends, playing well past his time, begging all the PSL team to sign him, unqualified and holding 3 positions, his obsession with old and rubbish players like himself, being a puppet of PCB, having a loser mentality, barking against young players, losing to Zimbabwe, recommending Azhar has captain for odi when he won't even select him, making him captain when he's averaging less then tailenders. Embarassing himself in t20s before retiring just like in Tests, Pathetic selections, imran and ifti last played when misbah was the captain, what a coincidence they play the first game as soon as misbah becomes the coach.

Please answer them then i will become a fan boy like you.

Uff that's a masaacre

 

[Pete Rose]

Mickey biggest mistake I think was that he did not promote specialist spinners . Other than that there is no doubt he is far superior to Misbah as a coach.

two issues which relate to how he parted ways with CSA and CA
- he didnt do enough to get rid of Malik and Hafeez in odi's: they pretty much doomed Pakistan's chances in the world cup.
- couldnt find a way to get rid of asad and azhar from the test team

Malik and Hafeez have a decade on under-performance in tough conditions and against tough opposition behind them...so that should have been easy.
Azhar and Asad would have been difficult but he should have put them on notice publically

He didnt do both those things because he had developed a reputation as a fiery character after his fallout with CA and with CSA.

 

[ZamanFan]

A really passionate and sincere coach for Pakistan. Had seen 2 teams [Graeme Smith's South Africa and Clarke's Australia] under his coaching, both teams had different issues with him but his stint with Pakistan and the way he fought the corrupt mafia in PCB initially was commendable. When he send back Umar Akmal at the start of Champions Trophy after he failed the fitness test and replaced Ahmed Shehzad with Fakhar Zaman, it had a great effct on the PAkistan team and the fans. The only drawback was his cooperation with Inzamam and allowing deadbeats like Shafiq, Azhar and Imam to continue.

He and Sarfaraz not only won our first multinational tournament in many years, improved Pakistan rankings in all formats. Kept Pakistan no. 1 in T20 for a year.

Mixed feelings about his appointment, not very good news for Pakistan.

 

[Titan24]

If Misbah loses to SL but retains his position, I would accept PCB won't act on his incompetence and accept we're stuck with him.

I've watched cricket since 1999 and I've never been this close to cease watching Pakistan cricket and I can promise you, there are many other fans you feel like this right now. Misbah ruined Pakistan's ODI team and I can't watch him to do it again but this time on a much bigger scale, as it would be across all formats.

So now that I've addressed your post, anything you have to say about those three mistakes he has repeated since the last tour of Australia? Can you not acknowledge that he simply isn't learning from his blunders?

There is no denying Misbah hasnt been upto the mark till now in few of his selections and strategies. This is is first role as a head coach and chief selector as well so it was never gonna be a smooth ride, I can only hope he turns it around fast for the sake of Pak team and also for the fans start to expect something from Pak team again however, recent disappointment started post CT17 win and its just the continuation while overall disappointment has been part of this whole decade with few milestones like being no 1 test team, no 1 T20 team and CT 17 in between.

 

[Titan24]

On the appointment of Mickey Arthur, I think he is a good developer of talent. I think he did good work with Babar and Imam. He knows how to improve players. But he had issues with tactical decisions. He has to understand this if he is to succeed in this role. One other thing that will be interesting is his relationship with the senior players. He had issues with senior players in his last 2 international jobs. Any such problems here and Sri Lanka won't hesitate in letting him go.

Exactly, I have supported this view regarding Mickey quite a few times as well. Mickey has proven to be great at player development as he did with SA as well as Pak however, his adaptability to sub continental conditions along with his tactics left a lot to be desired especially if we consider he has a lot of experience as head coach.

 

[ZamanFan]

two issues which relate to how he parted ways with CSA and CA
- he didnt do enough to get rid of Malik and Hafeez in odi's: they pretty much doomed Pakistan's chances in the world cup.
- couldnt find a way to get rid of asad and azhar from the test team

Mickey did try to oust Hafeez and Malik. One should'nt blame coach Arthur for the things that biased selector Inzamam did. MAlik was sent back after NZ series but Inzamam kept selecting both of them in the squad. Hafeez was kept out of the PAkistan T20 XI against Australia and Zibabwe and tour to Zimbabwe. Arthur had succesfully removed Hafeez from his World Cup plans but then joker Ehsan Mani became PCB chairman and the Asia Cup loss both helped that monster Inzamam to force his decisions on the team management.

Still remember how just before World Cup 2019, for the series against Australia Inzamam made 6 changes including removing the captain Sarfaraz to make case for Shoaib Malik to captain Pakistan team as well as ease the return of Umar Akmal in the side.

 

[Hyperion66]

SL could kiss their test cricket goodbye now, disastrous move from SLCB. Perhaps they want to prioritize t20 cricket otherwise this decision doesn't make sense, why would they hire Pakistan's rejects?

 

[Hyperion66]

How fitting it would if Mickey beats Misbah in his first series !

I was totally counting on SL giving another epic phainta to Pak but now not a chance.

 

[Hyperion66]

Exactly, I have supported this view regarding Mickey quite a few times as well. Mickey has proven to be great at player development as he did with SA as well as Pak however, his adaptability to sub continental conditions along with his tactics left a lot to be desired especially if we consider he has a lot of experience as head coach.

How many talents has he developed for your team? I would really appreciate a list.

 

[jnaveen1980]

"I wouldn't pick a team without Karunaratne"

"It doesn' matter whether we lose or not it matters how we lose"

 

[Hasan123]

Exactly, I have supported this view regarding Mickey quite a few times as well. Mickey has proven to be great at player development as he did with SA as well as Pak however, his adaptability to sub continental conditions along with his tactics left a lot to be desired especially if we consider he has a lot of experience as head coach.

He said in the press conference today he is going to try and understand the culture. So he is hinting at potentially backing spinners.

 

[Titan24]

How many talents has he developed for your team? I would really appreciate a list.

Babar Azam mainly while, Shaheen has been groomed decently, Sharjeel was also handled pretty well after his comeback in 2016, to an extent Shadab, Imam is developing decently in ODIs. So these are few I can think off but main credit is just for Babar Azam as he had the skills and he was handled well by Mickey just like he did with ABD, Amla, Steyn etc for SA however the team results for Pak werent upto the mark.

A coach with confidence in a player can make him and after Waqar brought Babar into the team Mickey did well with him after talking over and he is an asset for Pak team. Nothing went wrong in his development so I will take it as a win in development part.

 

[Hawkeye]

two issues which relate to how he parted ways with CSA and CA
- he didnt do enough to get rid of Malik and Hafeez in odi's: they pretty much doomed Pakistan's chances in the world cup.
- couldnt find a way to get rid of asad and azhar from the test team

Malik and Hafeez have a decade on under-performance in tough conditions and against tough opposition behind them...so that should have been easy.
Azhar and Asad would have been difficult but he should have put them on notice publically

He didnt do both those things because he had developed a reputation as a fiery character after his fallout with CA and with CSA.

This is the assumption you've been living under. Which is totally false.

He actually likes Malik, Sarfraz, Hafeez, and has even lead the calls to bring them back in his Straight Drive assessments.

Just like he still backs and loves Shafiq.

Mickey Arthur fans "want" to believe that he didn't back Malik, Sarfraz - but that's what they choose to believe ignoring the reality.

IF they accept the reality, then they wouldn't be able to stay his fans.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

This is the assumption you've been living under. Which is totally false.

He actually likes Malik, Sarfraz, Hafeez, and has even lead the calls to bring them back in his Straight Drive assessments.

Just like he still backs and loves Shafiq.

Mickey Arthur fans "want" to believe that he didn't back Malik, Sarfraz - but that's what they choose to believe ignoring the reality.

IF they accept the reality, then they wouldn't be able to stay his fans.

Mickey on a podcast clarified that Malik and Hafeez were selected for the WC for their experience in the locker room. This was a collective decision, not just his. Even if they didn't play, they'd be able to guide the young players which is necessary. He did admit to the lineups not being optimal at the start of the tournament and perhaps should've kept Haris in the starting XI.

He backed Sarfaraz as a captain but also knew he hadn't performed as required from a captain. He was hesitant in handing over the captaincy to Babar or Shadab because of their age. This left him no choice as there wasn't really another option available.

He is wrong about Asad.

 

[Hasan123]

I can see Kusal Mendis developing nicely under Mickey.

 

[Hyperion66]

Babar Azam mainly while, Shaheen has been groomed decently, Sharjeel was also handled pretty well after his comeback in 2016, to an extent Shadab, Imam is developing decently in ODIs. So these are few I can think off but main credit is just for Babar Azam as he had the skills and he was handled well by Mickey just like he did with ABD, Amla, Steyn etc for SA however the team results for Pak werent upto the mark.

A coach with confidence in a player can make him and after Waqar brought Babar into the team Mickey did well with him after talking over and he is an asset for Pak team. Nothing went wrong in his development so I will take it as a win in development part.

So basically it's more handling than developing? Babar was a Pakistani prodigy, he was destined to be Babar Azam of today irrespective of the coach present. Pretty sure ATGs like ABD, Amla, Steyn would have been handled well by any coach, this is like saying Karsten handled Sachin, Sehwag and Dhoni well, of course he did and that is no big deal when you are coaching a top level team you are expected to not mess around with the pillars of the team, that's like bare minimum.

Perhaps you didn't get my point about player development, which is identifying and handpicking raw talents from domestics even when their stats do not support that decision, then nurturing, backing them, help them evolve to match top level requirements and make stars out of them. Ganguly and Wright developed Zaheer, Sehwag, Yuvi, Harbhajan and that changed the mindset and approach of the entire team. Chappell did the same with Raina, Bayliss developed Roy, Bairstow, Butler, Imran handpicked Inzi, Waqar, Wasim. You see where am I going with this? Babar Azam was making a name for himself in the domestics and has been earmarked for future selections even before Mickey came into picture. Sharjeel's glory was too short lived to make any judgement and sorry I don't consider Shadab, Hasan, Faheem, Imad etc as examples of talent development and as much as I like Imam he is far from being developed. He didn't get much time with Shaheen and I will give him that.

I was expecting some analytical approach from a seasoned poster like you, sad to see you too are agreeing with the generic ** here.

 

[Pete Rose]

This is the assumption you've been living under. Which is totally false.

He actually likes Malik, Sarfraz, Hafeez, and has even lead the calls to bring them back in his Straight Drive assessments.

Just like he still backs and loves Shafiq.

Mickey Arthur fans "want" to believe that he didn't back Malik, Sarfraz - but that's what they choose to believe ignoring the reality.

IF they accept the reality, then they wouldn't be able to stay his fans.

Not really, no. Malik and Hafeez were a collective decision...and the fact they were benched by the end tells you where he stood. Its a shame that we couldnt have done that before the horror show against west indies and throwing the match away from winning position against Australia.

Re: Azhar and Asad there was reporting from multiple sources that he had gotten sick of their performance in South Africa and there was a blow up in the dressing room. It was largely confirmed by the players. As for wanting Shafiq now (and NOT Azhar) he is wrong or as coach of Sri Lanka, right to want a timid player under pressure to play for Pakistan.

 

[Pete Rose]

Mickey on a podcast clarified that Malik and Hafeez were selected for the WC for their experience in the locker room. This was a collective decision, not just his. Even if they didn't play, they'd be able to guide the young players which is necessary. He did admit to the lineups not being optimal at the start of the tournament and perhaps should've kept Haris in the starting XI.

He backed Sarfaraz as a captain but also knew he hadn't performed as required from a captain. He was hesitant in handing over the captaincy to Babar or Shadab because of their age. This left him no choice as there wasn't really another option available.

He is wrong about Asad.

Its a collective decision is kind of debatable. If you look at the scenario:
We are on a big match losing spree - first Australia then england. Captain suffering from job insecurity, selector also feeling the pressure so brought back experiences hands. How does the coach say no without it leaking out to press etc.

 

[Titan24]

Perhaps you didn't get my point about player development, which is identifying and handpicking raw talents from domestics even when their stats do not support that decision, then nurturing, backing them, help them evolve to match top level requirements and make stars out of them. Ganguly and Wright developed Zaheer, Sehwag, Yuvi, Harbhajan and that changed the mindset and approach of the entire team. Chappell did the same with Raina, Bayliss developed Roy, Bairstow, Butler, Imran handpicked Inzi, Waqar, Wasim. You see where am I going with this? Babar Azam was making a name for himself in the domestics and has been earmarked for future selections even before Mickey came into picture. Sharjeel's glory was too short lived to make any judgement and sorry I don't consider Shadab, Hasan, Faheem, Imad etc as examples of talent development and as much as I like Imam he is far from being developed. He didn't get much time with Shaheen and I will give him that.

I was expecting some analytical approach from a seasoned poster like you, sad to see you too are agreeing with the generic ** here.

I think we were taking a different approach when talking about player development.

You are right that Babar was destined to be Babar Azam and Mickey just handled him well which to be honest is a big thing as a Pakistani fan as even such basic things are a rarity.

I have said the same thing you have mentioned countless times before as well while highlighting the in competencies of Mickey Arthur than he didn't handpick anybody from domestics and all his selections were mainly from PSL. He didnt even brought in players he rated e.g Usama Mir (Leggy) while he was the coach so there is that.

Amla actually struggled a lot in his first 10-16 test matches where he was averaging in 20s. I wasnt impressed by Mickey as a coach ever and him not messing up the youngsters which came under him during his tenure through PSL is the only positive I can think off when talking about him. If you see the threads history I have created threads and written posts criticizing Mickey's coaching approach and the blunders he made.

He isnt Pak coach anymore so I try to avoid bringing in countless negative aspects associated with Mickey's regime as I have had tons and tons of posts and conversations with posters who rated Mickey really highly. Dont want to appear all out Mickey hater even when isnt the Pak coach anymore however, will still be presenting the facts to posters who think he was some sort of a savior.

 

[Markhor]

It's simple regarding the coaching situation, Pakistan downgraded and Sri Lanka have upgraded.

 

[Pete Rose]

It's simple regarding the coaching situation, Pakistan downgraded and Sri Lanka have upgraded.

Pakistan downgraded is big call considering the coaches we have had lost Woolmer

 

[aloo paratha]

Sucks for Sri Lanka.

 

[QalandarFan]

Has PCB filed a copyright claim?

 

[MenInG]

Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur said that his coaching staff are utilising the time off from cricket to reflect on the first three months of their tenure as well as on recalibrating the plans for future series.

"We are using this time to reflect on the first three months of our tenure and recalibrate our individual and team plans going forward to the very important series that we have coming up later in the year," said Arthur in an interview with SLC media on Sunday, 5 April.

"We have been very happy with the improvement and willingness from the players to buy into the structure, work ethic, levels of preparation and goals that we have set the team in all formats," he added.

Arthur took up the coaching role with Sri Lanka in December 2019, ahead of the team's two-Test series in Pakistan, which the hosts won 1-0. Following that tour, Sri Lanka lost T20I series in India, won Test series in Zimbabwe before hosting West Indies for a white-ball contest. Sri Lanka swept the ODI leg of the series while West Indies won the two T20Is.

"This isolation period is giving us as coaching staff a time to reflect as well on the player plans, roles and goals that we have set for ourselves as a group," Arthur said. "We are also looking at trends from around the world and analyzing all the opposition that we are going to play against over the next year. We as a group want to stay ahead of the pack and be the leaders not the followers in terms of coaching trends around the world."

Sri Lanka were in the middle of their preparation for a home series against England when the current world situation took hold, forcing the series to be called off. Arthur expressed disappointment, saying this was the time when his team had started to grow under him and also had "worked out a brand".

"It was really disappointing not playing the Test series against England although this will be played at a later date. I felt that our Test team grew so much on our tour of Zimbabwe ... this tour was very tough and we had to play very disciplined cricket to win the series because of the conditions that we were presented with over there," he continued.

"We had just worked out a brand that we knew would be successful against all teams and I just hope that the momentum that we had built up will not be lost with our test team when we start up again ... we have some very realistic goals with our Test team and believe that we have now the players and game plans to have success both at home and abroad in the future."

https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/1652783

 

[Ahson8]

Get ready for "We're a proud team and we hate losing".

Also,

Grant Flower is another person who was getting paid millions for doing nothing. Our batting regressed massively under him.

Our batsmen forgot how to play at home, let alone away.

I wonder how come this duo managed to convince SL to hire them. That too together. Anyways, all the best!

SL 340/6 vs SA away on Day 1 on his first assignment as SL test coach

 

[Ahson8]

I wonder how long before SL regress under Mickey and Flower in test cricket.

Definitely regressed...

 

[Rana]

Average 1st day score at supersport park was 330 something.

If SL get to 400 then they are bang on favourites to win this game

 

[Markhor]

SL 340/6 vs SA away on Day 1 on his first assignment as SL test coach

Fantastic bump. However the comments you quoted are to be expected from fans of glorified PE teachers Misbah and Waqar.

 

[Saj]

Mickey satisfied with day 1 but says there's a lot of hard work ahead as this pitch will deteriorate.

Not happy with a couple of the batsmen either .

 

[Hasan123]

Fantastic bump. However the comments you quoted are to be expected from fans of glorified PE teachers Misbah and Waqar.

I like Mickey. But if you are going to praise him for the batting performance, surely you have to criticise him for the bowling? I'm sure If they bowled well , you would be praising Mickey.