Former Caribbean cricketer Phil Simmons has returned as the Head Coach of the Windies cricket team. Simmons previously worked for Windies in the same role between 2015 and 2016.
On Monday (14th October), Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced the name of the new Head Coach of men’s international team. Along with Desmond Haynes and Floyd Reifer, Phil Simmons was the final three shortlisted candidates for this role. Simmons will work for this team for the next four years.
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The 56-year-old Phil Simmons is a very experienced and reputed coach in international cricket. After the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, Simmons joined as the Head Coach of this Caribbean side. Under his tenure, they achieved some memorable successes, including winning the ICC World T20 2016. It was the second World T20 trophy for Windies and became the first team to win this trophy for more than once.
However, in September 2016, the board removed Simmons citing “differences in cultural and strategic approach”.
After then, Windies struggled in international cricket as they failed to qualify for the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 as well as failed to qualify directly for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. However, later, they secured their qualification for CWC 2019 after finishing as the runners-up in the ICC CWC Qualifier 2018.
In the CWC 2019, Windies little bit impressed under the interim coach Floyd Reifer. However, they didn’t achieve the proper result as Windies finished in the ninth position. In that tournament, Windies won only two matches out of nine games and earned five points (also one no result).
CWI members are confident on Phil Simmons
Ricky Skerritt, the CWI President, is confident about their recent selection for the head coach post of the men’s team.
Skerritt claimed in the media release, “Bringing Phil Simmons back is not just righting a past wrong, but I am confident that CWI has chosen the right man for the job at the right time. I want to also thank the very talented Floyd Reifer for the hard work he put in while he was the interim coach.”
Phil Simmons also played the Head Coach roles for Ireland and Afghanistan. Under his coaching, those international teams achieved massive success.
Recently, Simmons applied for the Head Coach post of Indian men’s national cricket team. He was one of the members of the final five shortlisted candidates for that post. However, he withdrew during the final interview process.
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Simmons’ first assignment for the latest role will be Windies tour of India where they will play against Afghanistan and India. At first, Windies will play three T20Is, three ODIs and only Test against Afghanistan between 5th November and 1st December 2019. Later, Windies will play three T20Is and three ODIs against India from 6th to 22nd December 2019.