People often wonder what role does a supporting staff play for a cricket team. It is a general feeling that cricket is essentially a game between the bat and the ball and whoever plays better on the days end ends up winning the game.
While it is true that the team which performs well on the day wins, what goes behind achieving that perfect performance is something that the coaching staff helps the players with.
During the initial days when the game was far simpler, there used to be just a head coach who worked closely with the captain to come up with strategies, analysis, and improvisations.
But with time, as the game has been reduced to being a battle of every single ball, the number of members in the coaching staff has increased too.
One look at the dugout of all the teams would give you an idea about who is calling the shots for the team.
For Mumbai, it is Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene, Shane Bond, and Robin Singh while for RCB it Mike Hesson and Simon Katich. Delhi has the likes of Ricky Ponting, Mohammad Kaif, and Vijay Dahiya in their ranks while KKR boasts of Brendon McCullum and Abhishek Nayar working in unison. SRH to their credit has Laxman and Muralitharan as its mentors while Trevor Bayliss and Brad Haddin handle the coaching part of things.
But one team which caught our attention this year was KXIP. Their coaching staff has winners written all over their credentials. They have the talent of Jonty Rhodes, the acumen of Andy Flower, and the determination of Anil Kumble.
Any other team after suffering so many heartbreaking losses must have given up hope, but thanks to KXIP and the role played by its coaching staff, they are very much in the competition and it feels like they are here to stay.
