Windies interim head coach eager for the challenge

Interim West Indies coach Andre Coley insists he is eager to embrace the challenge of coaching the regional cricket team, despite the numerous challenges associated with it.

Former all-rounder Phil Simmons became the latest casualty in a long line of coaches tasked with pushing the Caribbean team back among global cricket’s elites and failing to achieve that elusive target.

Coley, who has had stints with the region’s High-Performance Centre, women’s team and also served as an assistant coach for the men’s team, was appointed to fill the role, while Cricket West Indies (CWI) contemplates its next moves.

CWI announced that Coley would oversee the two-Test tour of Zimbabwe from the 28th January to 16th February, as well as the multi-format tour of South Africa, which includes two Tests, three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and three T20 Internationals (T20Is) from the 21rd February to 28th March.

Despite finding himself placed under the microscope, in light of some of the team’s recent poor performances, he remains motivated and enthused to take up the role.

“Every coaching opportunity bring a different challenge and I have never been one to back away from a challenge,” Coley told the SportsMax Zone.

“If offered generally I look to take them on.  It’s just about assessing working with staff working with the players and coming up with the right strategy,” he added.

The 48-year-old has had a few stints with the senior, first joining the coaching ranks under Otis Gibson and serving spells under Stuart Law and briefly Simmons.  In his estimation, communication will be a crucial part of his plans for success.

“In this case communication is going to be very crucial, so working out what that communication strategy is going to be.” (Sportsmax)