The former India captain and the former BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly, has been the most common name that has been picked in the scheme of things to be a contender for the role of Indian cricket team head coach. He is currently relishing his maiden tournament as a head coach with the Pretoria Capitals in the SA20.
Former rival cricketers who have been foes on the field of cricket have turned friends as they turned to coaching in their careers after having retired from international cricket. Currently, among national setups, former NZ star Brendon McCullum coaches England alongside Marcus Trescothick, and Gautam Gambhir coaches alongside former South African pacer Morne Morkel.
In franchise cricket, such incidents are marked more commonly, as players from different parts of the world come under the same roof to lead the franchise teams in globally renowned leagues.
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Sourav Ganguly’s head coach debut lands in a massive success with Pretoria Capitals
Sourav Ganguly was appointed the head coach of the Pretoria Capitals. Ganguly, who has been associated with the Capitals franchises for a longtime has served as the Director of Cricket with the Delhi Capitals in the IPL but has never taken up a role as the head coach of the side.
His debut as the head coach of a franchise served excellently for both the coach and the team, as Pretoria Capitals managed to qualify for the finals of the SA20, that too with a win over the two-time champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
None of the Capitals’ franchises have ever managed to win a trophy, and this is the first time that Sourav Ganguly has also been this close to a trophy with the Capitals. This is a huge opportunity for the legend to prove his merit as a head coach and contend for the head coach role with India if the BCCI thinks to move past Gautam Gambhir.
“We have a laugh, we have a cry. We share our emotions,” said Shaun Pollock on Sourav Ganguly
As said earlier, in the context of former rivals turning friends, former Indian batter Sourav Ganguly and South African pacer Shaun Pollock have taken up the role as coaches for the Pretoria Capitals.
Speaking of the relation between him and the former rival turned head coach of the Capitals, Sourav Ganguly, Pollock said:
“We have a laugh, we have a cry. We share our emotions. It’s nice to be working with a wonderful bunch of guys. We’ve tried to be as consistent as we possibly can. You should also understand that we’re over our 50s, and for us it’s about trying to help out, but you’ve got to back your players, you’ve got to believe in the players and trust them. That’s probably the hardest part for us,” Shaun Pollock told NDTV in a select media interaction after PC’s win in Durban.
“The only good thing is we’re there, and now we’ve got an opportunity” – Pretoria Capitals assistant coach
The Capitals entered the finals after defeating the mighty Sunrisers Eastern Cape, who had played three finals in a row in the SA20, but Pollock sees it as just another win, as he sees it as something they want to read.
“They’re a quality unit. They understand the game; they play very well in their own conditions. So yeah, we’re not reading too much into it. Most of these guys weren’t involved in the first season, so we’re not reading too much into that.
“The only good thing is we’re there, and now we’ve got an opportunity. We’ll just wait to see who we play,” said Pollock, showing a clear intent and razor-sharp focus within the Pretoria Capitals den to win this year’s SA20 title.
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