Cricket Australia extends Darren Lehman’s contract till 2019
Jan 13, 2019 at 4:23 PM
Cricket Australia extended the contract of Darren Lehmann as the chief coach of Australia till October 2019.
Lehman took charge of Australia after Australia’s group stage exit from the 2013 Champions Trophy in England and was contracted until June 2017, which was now been extended for more than two years to cover the Ashes series and the 50 over World Cup.
After Lehmann’s appointment, Australia have regained the No. 1 spot in ICC Test and ODI ranking. They defeated England 5-0 at home, defeated South Africa in a Test series before winning the 50 over World Cup.
But Australia lost the Ashes 3-0 and 3-2 in England 2013 and 2015 respectively.
The CA wants to give a stability to the team till the 2019 World Cup so Lehman’s contract. CA executive general manager Pat Howard said, “2019 is such a big year for Australian cricket and we wanted certainty and stability for the playing group with both the coach and assistant coach [David Saker] contracted as we build towards the Ashes series and the 2019 World Cup.” “Darren has had great success in the role and he and the National Selection Panel deserve a huge amount of credit for taking a relatively young side to number one in the world in two of the three formats.
“What often goes unseen is how big of a supporter Darren has been of the wider cricket system in Australia and that is crucial to the long term sustainability of Australian cricket. The commitment he shows to the role goes far broader that of the Australian men’s team and extends into the global support of the game through his work on the ICC Cricket Committee.”
The Australian team is currently touring Sri Lanka where they lost the first match by 106 runs.
“I am incredibly grateful for the support and faith the Cricket Australia board and the players have put in me,” he said. “I absolutely love doing this job and as far as I am concerned it is the best job in the world.
“There is still a lot I would like to achieve in the time I have left and we have a lot of hard work ahead of us, especially with an upcoming Test series in India and a home Ashes series. I don’t just see my job as winning games of cricket. It’s about continuing to grow the game from the grassroots up in Australia, and helping to grow the game worldwide.
“We want to see as many fans come and watch us as possible, and we need to ensure we continue to play that entertaining brand of cricket so that ultimately we have more people wanting to watch and play this great game.”