IPL 2020 | Biggest T20 Event in the World only has One Indian Coach?

IPL 2020 is all set to invade our living rooms but behind the scenes of the biggest t20 tournament is the development of a rather worrying trend. IPL only has one Indian head coach in the form of Anil Kumble. Kumble, one of the most successful spinners in the world heads up the coaching responsibilities for Kings XI Punjab.

Kumble is also brushing up his Punjabi accent to be able to communicate effectively with his team. While Kumble has the luxury to try out these things other Indian coaches have been unsuccessful in even getting a top coaching job in the IPL. The legendary spinner has the following to say about this

“I can’t answer that question (why other teams don’t have Indian head coaches). I don’t think it gives a true reflection of the quality or the availability of Indian resources. It’s a bit of an irony right? It’s the Indian Premier League and then you have only one Indian as the head coach. I am hopeful that there will be more Indian coaches in the mix,”.

All the other franchises have opted for foreign head coaches in the form of Simon Katich (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Mahela Jayawardene (Mumbai Indians); Trevor Bayliss (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Brendon McCullum (Kolkata Knight Riders); Ricky Ponting (Delhi Capitals); Andrew McDonald (Rajasthan Royals) and Stephen Fleming (Chennai Super Kings)

The stats before IPL 2020 dont look to promising for Indian head coaches either. Prior to Kumble taking up the job, only three Indians have coached in IPL : Venkatesh Prasad (RCB), Robin Singh (SRH) and Lalchand Rajput (MI).

Havoc caused by COVID-19 has been unprecedented to a point that this will be the first time Kumble will be meeting the squad in person.

“The reason I have taken up this assignment with KXIP is that we have great a squad to go all the way. That’s my role, to prepare the team. This is first time I am meeting the squad. Because of Covid, we have got to spend a longer time with the team. Otherwise, it’s just one week before the tournament,” said Kumble.

“I think our first goal is to prepare the team to achieve a common purpose, that of winning the IPL. It’s not only about me imparting knowledge. Our intention is to help the players in their careers. I know two months is a short time but at least, we will try and help them, especially (in) building fitness, preparing for a match.”

Kumble Wants Senior Players Like Gayle to Step Up

Kumble also wants senior players such as Gayle to step up to the plate not only as a batsmen but also in the capacity of  a leader.

“The youngsters look up to him. It’s just not Chris the batsman we are looking at but also Chris in a leadership role, in terms developing players. We have chats about him contributing. He has been with us for three to four days and he has been very keen,” said Kumble.

The inputs of the hard hitting batsman become even more important as KXIP enter this year’s tournament with a new captain “I have seen KL from a young age. He has captained in junior matches before but this will be the first time that he will be captaining in a high-profile tournament.

He has been brilliant so far, very relaxed. He knows the players more than me. He has been with the team for two years now. He has been in the scene (top level cricket) for 10 years now. He knows the nuances of what it takes to be as a leader,” said Kumble.

“We have a strong team. We needed an impact player in the middle. So we have got Glenn Maxwell. He can be an impact player not just with the bat but also with his spin. Also, we needed a fast bowler at the death and Sheldon Cottrell will help us there,” said Kumble.