Harbhajan Singh: Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has said that the Men in Blue should consider having different coaches for red-ball and white-ball cricket. The 45-year-old felt that split coaching could help in better preparation for various series and having a solitary coach for all formats could take a toll on the person at the helm.
Harbhajan Singh: Harbhajan felt that if India could have format-based teams, then they could consider having red-ball and white-ball coaches as well.
Harbhajan Singh: Speaking to India Today, the 2011 World Cup winner said,
Harbhajan Singh: “Because your coach also needs time to prepare for a series. Like five Tests against Australia, then in England, then elsewhere. So the coach can prepare and set out what his team should be. The same goes for a white-ball coach. He will need time to prepare as well.
Harbhajan Singh: “If you overwork one coach for the whole year, he, too has a family and responsibilities. Traveling constantly with family isn’t easy. So yes, if you ask me, splitting red-ball and white-ball coaching is a good move.
Harbhajan Singh: “I feel if it can be implemented, there is nothing wrong in it. You have different teams and different players for formats. If we can do it, it’s a good option. It will reduce workload for everyone, including the coaches. So if it can happen, it isn’t a bad option.”
This is not the first time that Harbhajan has advocated India to consider split coaching. In February 2023, he had said that India could consider having different coaches for different formats.
Harbhajan had said that someone like Ashish Nehra could be considered to take over as India’s T20I coach after leading Gujarat Titans to an IPL title in his first year.
“The coach knows that focus is on T20 cricket. Say if Ashish Nehra is the T20 coach, then he knows that his job is to make the Indian team champions in the T20 format, and Rahul Dravid knows he has to work on how the Indian team can be No.1 in Tests and ODIs,” Harbhajan had said.
Harbhajan Singh: How split coaching has fared for other teams globally
England were one of the first sides to adopt split coaching in 2022. They appointed former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum as the red-ball coach and appointed former Australian women’s team coach Matthew Mott as the white-ball coach.
That decision seemed to have worked briefly as England defeated New Zealand 3-0 at home before beating Pakistan by the same scoreline away from home. They then drew the 2023 Ashes at home against Australia 2-2 at home. In the same period, Mott coached the white-ball side, led by Jos Buttler, to a T20 World Cup win in Australia in 2022.
However, things soon began to unravel after two consecutive mediocre outings at the 2023 ODI World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup. That prompted England to sack Mott and appoint McCullum as the head coach for both the red-ball and white-ball teams in September 2024.
Pakistan also tried to implement split coaching when they appointed Jason Gillespie as the red-ball coach and Gary Kirsten as the white-ball coach in April 2024. That experiment failed miserably as Kirsten resigned in October 2024 and Gillespie put down his papers in December 2024.
