Published: Aug 23, 2019, 02:43 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 23, 2019, 02:43 PM (IST)
Mike Hesson and Simon Katich have today been appointed Director of Cricket Operations and head coach respectively of IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
The RCB management on Friday released Gary Kirsten from his role as head coach and Ashish Nehra as bowling coach.
In IPL 2019, RCB lost six games in a row and ended up last on the points table under Virat Kohli’s captaincy. They won five and lost eight matches in the tournament, while one game was washed out.
(READ: Hesson congratulates Shastri for retaining India head coach role)
“RCB’s purpose is to be the most trusted, respected and best performing t20 franchise and hence our constant endeavour is to create a culture of excellence and high performance for every member of the team. To deliver this ambition, we are very happy to announce the appointment of Mike Hesson and Simon Katich,” said Sanjeev Churiwala, the RCB chairman.
“We believe that Mike’s extensive experience in building strong teams along with Simon’s powerful cricket experience will help us create a winning culture.
“As a result of this restructuring exercise, we will be moving to a single coach model. Consequently, we would like to thank Gary Kirsten and Ashish Nehra for their contribution over the past two seasons. They leave us with a legacy of having given several young players the confidence to show their ability on the highest stage. Everyone at Royal Challengers Bangalore wishes them all the best in the future.”
(READ: After India snub, Hesson declined offers from Pakistan, Bangladesh)
Former Australia Test specialist Katich in July parted ways with Kolkata Knight Riders, with whom he was assistant coach. Two-time IPL winners KKR finished fifth on the 2019 points table and missed out on a play-off berth due to net run-rate.
Earlier this month, speculation grew over Hesson’s likely future with India, Pakistan or Bangladesh after he exited the Kings XI Punjab setup a day after the PCB sacked Mickey Arthur and his entire coaching staff. His name was linked as one of the frontrunners for the role of Bangladesh’s head coach, and he later applied for the role of India’s head coach but lost out to Ravi Shastri.
In 2018, Hesson was named coach of KXIP in the IPL. The franchise finished sixth on the IPL 2019 points table.
