Top 10 Famous Cricket Coaches of all Time

An image of Cricket players ready for a match. By Ndahiro derrick. Wikimedia

Top 10 Famous Cricket Coaches of all Time

The key to success is to be skilled, but it is also important to hone those skills and perform well. That requires a guide, a teacher, to hold the person’s hand and lead them down the right path to their destination. This is true in every situation. Even when we consider sports such as cricket. The following are the top ten coaches of all time. Cricket, like any other sport, has outstanding coaches. This article will attempt to focus on the most famous football coaches of all time. Let us have a look;

1. Bob Woolmer

Bob Woolmer, Picture By PaddyBriggs. Wikimedia

Bob Woolmer, a former English cricketer, and professional cricket coach began coaching with Warwickshire County Cricket Club in 1991. He won the Natwest Trophy in 1993 with the Warwickshire. Woolmer was appointed as South Africa’s coach in 1994, and the South African national cricket team won 10 of 15 Test series during his tenure.

He was also named coach of the Pakistan team in 2004, and the team won the ODI series against India on the Return Tour 4-2 shortly after he joined the team. Bob was honored with Pakistan’s highest civil award, the “Sitara-e-Imtiaz,” for his contributions to the Pakistan national cricket team.

He died on March 18, 2007, just hours after Pakistan was unexpectedly eliminated from the 2007 Cricket World Cup by Ireland. He was by far the greatest cricket coach in Pakistani history.

2. John Wright

John Wright, a retired New Zealand cricketer and professional cricket coach, was nicknamed “Shake” during his playing career for his incredible success as New Zealand’s opening batsman. He began his international coaching career with the Kent County Cricket Club and was named head coach of the Indian national cricket team in 2000, a position he held until 2005.

During his tenure, the Indian team improved dramatically, reaching the final of the ICC 2003 Cricket World Cup and winning the home test series against Australia, including the historic Kolkata test, which India won after overcoming a follow-on with VVS Laxman scoring 281 not out.

Wright served as the coach of the New Zealand cricket team from December 2010 to 2012. He was appointed as the head coach of the Mumbai Indians in the IPL in January 2013.

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3. Mike Hesson

Mike Hesson, one of the most recent head coaches of the New Zealand cricket team, is widely regarded as one of the best modern cricket coaches. In 1996, he began his international coaching career with a seven-year apprenticeship as the director of coaching at Otago Cricket Club.

Hesson began his coaching career at the age of 22, making him an unusually young coach. Mike was named head coach of Kenya’s national cricket team in 2011. However, he resigned in May 2012, citing security concerns he and his family had during their stay.

He also coached the Argentina National Cricket Team for eight months in 2003. The South American team won three games after suffering 31 consecutive defeats under his leadership. On July 20, 2012, he was named head coach of the New Zealand national cricket team. He was their coach until 2018.

4. Darren Lehmann

Darren Lehmann. Picture By NAPARAZZI. Wikimedia

Darren Lehmann, a retired Australian cricketer, and professional cricket coach played 27 tests and 117 ODIs for Australia. In 2008, he began his coaching career as an assistant coach with the Australia Centre of Excellence.

From 2009 to 2012, Lehmann was the head coach of the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League. During the 2010-11 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, he was also named coach of the Queensland cricket team. Lehmann’s international coaching career began with the Australian national cricket team.

He took over for Mickey Arthur in June 2013 and remained the team’s coach until 2014. In addition to international coaching, he was the coach of Kings XI Punjab in 2012 and 2013. Sanjay Bangar then took the place of the coach of the IPL franchise. 

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5. Andy Flower

Andy Flower, a former Zimbabwean cricketer, and professional cricket coach is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in cricket history. He is the only Zimbabwean cricketer to be ranked 31st in the ICC’s Top 100 All-Time Test Batting list.

Andy began his international coaching career in May 2007 as an assistant coach for the England national cricket team. In April 2009, he was promoted to head coach of the English team.

The English national cricket team won the 2010 ICC World Cup Twenty20 under Flower’s coaching. In addition, they won the Ashes series three times, in 2009, 2011, and 2013. In the 2011 Birthday Honours, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire. And he did so by volunteering for the English cricket team.

6. Duncan Fletcher 

Duncan Fletcher. Picture Courtesy of NAPARAZZI Wikimedia

Duncan Fletcher, a former Zimbabwean cricketer, and professional cricket coach led Zimbabwe to victory in the 1982 ICC Trophy. In 1999, he began his international coaching career with the England national cricket team. During his tenure, which lasted until 2007, he made significant changes to the English national team.

After 18 years in English cricket history, he won the 2005 Ashes series. He also won the Commonwealth Bank Series in 2007. In 2005, Fletcher was awarded the Order of the British Empire. He did so for his contribution to England finally winning the Ashes after an 18-year wait.

On April 27, 2011, he was named coach of the Indian cricket team. He then served them until 2015. The Indian national cricket team won 8 international series victories including the 2013 Champions Trophy under Fletcher’s coaching.

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7. Dav Whatmore

Dav Whatmore. Picture Courtesy of Punya. Wikimedia

Dav Whatmore, a retired Australian cricketer, and professional cricket coach had a brief international career as an Australian player, appearing in seven Tests and one ODI. He began his international coaching career as a member of the Sri Lanka national cricket team.

Whatmore coached them for two years, during which time Sri Lanka won the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1996. From 2003 to 2007, he was the head coach of the Bangladesh national cricket team. In 2005, he led them to their first-ever Test victory.

On March 4, 2012, the Pakistan Cricket Board appointed Whatmore as the national team coach. He worked for them until Moin Khan took over in 2014. Pakistan won the Asia Cup in 2012 during his two-year term. In addition to his international coaching experience, he coached the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL from 2009 to the end of 2011.

8. Gary Kirsten

Gary Kirsten, a retired South African cricketer, and professional cricket coach hold the record for the most runs scored in a single innings in a One Day International by any South African, with 188 not out.

He began his international coaching career with the India national cricket team on March 1, 2008, and remained with the team until early 2011. India won the 2011 ICC World Cup and the 2009 Compaq Cup during his tenure, as well as reaching the finals of the 2008 Asia Cup and Kitply Cup.

M.S. Dhoni, one of the most successful cricket captains, called Kirsten “the best thing to happen to Indian cricket.” On 5 June 2011, he was also named head coach of the South African national cricket team, a position he held until August 2013. Kirsten founded Performance Zone with Paddy Upton and Dale Williams in 2007, in addition to his coaching career.

9. John Buchanan

Former first-class cricketer and coach John Buchanan is widely regarded as the greatest coach in cricket history, and he was nicknamed Ned Flanders due to his resemblance to the Simpsons character. After five years as coach of the Queensland Bulls, Buchanan was named coach of the Australian cricket team in October 1999.

The Australian national cricket team won the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup, the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, the 2004 India Tour, and the first-ever ICC Champions Trophy in 2006.

He was the coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders until June 2009, after retiring from the Australian team. During the 2010-11 Ashes series, the England Cricket Team hired him as a consultant. From May 2011 to July 2013, he was also the Director of Cricket for New Zealand Cricket.

10. Mickey Arthur

Mickey Arthur at a training session. By YellowMonkey. Wikimedia

Mickey Arthur is a former South African domestic cricketer and South African-Australian cricket coach. He played from 1986 to 2001. He coached the Pakistan Cricket Team from 2016 to 2019, and as of December 2020, he is the head coach of the Sri Lanka national cricket team.

From 2005 to 2010, he coached the South African national team, the Australian national team from 2010 until his dismissal in June 2013 (when Darren Lehmann took over), and the Pakistan national cricket team from 2016 to 2019. Mickey was appointed as the new head coach of Sri Lanka Cricket in December 2019, succeeding interim coach Rumesh Ratnayake.

His time as a coach demonstrated to the world why he is regarded as one of the best cricket coaches in the world.

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