Gibson may be the coach that SA cricket needs

Several months ago, a fine cricket coach with international experience let it be known to his close friends and former colleagues that he might, if it became available, be interested in the position of SA’s head coach. He was Ottis Gibson.

He was not only under contract to the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) as England’s bowling coach, he was happy and satisfied. It is unlikely that he even gave the details of his existing contract or a possible contract with Cricket SA any thought — he just thought his name should be close to the selection hat, if not formally in it.

The 48-year-old Barbadian would never have been tactless enough to approach anyone remotely involved in an official capacity at Cricket SA, but he has remained friends with several players from his six seasons at Border, Griquas and Gauteng in the 1990s and trusted them to put in a quiet word if and when the opportunity presented itself.

If and when Cricket SA and the ECB are able to agree on a move and whether any compensation should be paid, the most important point to remember for the Proteas, Cricket SA and the country’s supporters, is that Gibson is genuinely enthused by the job and was a long time ago.

It’s not just that he wants to return to head coaching after four successful years with the West Indies, from 2010 during which time they won the T20 World Cup in 2012, he cares about South African cricket because it cared for him as a player. He cares about spreading the game across the country, about transforming the demographics and also about not alienating anybody.

He was a fast-bowling allrounder who became the 79th bowler to take all 10 wickets in a first-class innings, with a return of 10/47 as Durham dismissed Hampshire for 115 in the county championship. He scored more than 5,500 firstclass runs at an average of 25 and a highest score of 155 in his final match.

Far more important is his ability to assess and assist technically. And far more important than technique at the elite global level is the ability to recognise and empathise with emotions specific to a sport that tests psychological wellbeing more thoroughly than most, not only on the field but in the weeks and months it demands of its combatants to spend on the road.

It is still theoretically possible that the Cricket SA board will ignore its “coach-selection committee’s” recommendation and ask Russell Domingo to continue, but he would be unlikely to do so in the knowledge that he was not deemed to be the best man for the job.

It is unfortunate that his tenure at the main wheel ended with such a miserable tour of England, but he was a good coach when appointed four years ago and is an even better one now. Cricket SA would be crazy not to keep him on staff, where he could be an asset at, say, under-19 level.

Assuming his employers do not stand in his way, Gibson has a great deal of work to do. He will need to work his short and medium-term agendas concurrently, while also working hard to gain an understanding of how the longterm plans will be implemented and goals attained.

Despite the wretched results in England, there remains an excellent core of experienced players. Gibson is, by nature, an optimist and he will be quick to reassure (in batting order) Dean Elgar, Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Faf du Plessis, Quinton de Kock, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj and Morné Morkel that they have critical roles to play in the Test series against India and Australia in early2018.

He will be keen to know where Dale Steyn is physically and mentally and, unless AB de Villiers has already made his mind up about his future, the new coach will have a critical role to play in deciding whether his future will include Test cricket or be limited to ODIs and domestic T20 leagues.

Coaching stints in international cricket generally don’t last longer than four years and Domingo should feel no sense of failure — far from it. ICC silverware eluded him, as it did his predecessors, but more series were won than lost and his transformation scorecard was better than any.

It will be exciting to see and hear about the national team, selection and the South African game in general through the eyes and ears of a man sympathetic, but not beholden to our ways and traditions.

An exciting new era beckons. (Contracts permitting.)