Cricketers Who Failed As A Player But Succeeded As Coach

Some cricketers go all the way but others fade away with time or take up another route. But the love for the game and ambition to serve it at the best capacity remains intact. In cricket history, there have been players who succeeded as an international cricketer and coach, while some did not have a glittering career but made it count as a coach. Let us have a look at five such players who later grew up to become fine coaches.

John Buchanan

John Buchanan failed miserably as a player. He made seven appearances for Queensland in First-Class cricket scoring 160 runs at an average of 12.30 and picked up 15 wickets. He, however, succeeded as a coach.

Buchanan was appointed as the coach of Australian cricket team in 1999. He led the national side to an unprecedented Test series’ domination soon after and brought out the best from them. He also recorded 15 wins from 15 matches at one point.

He helped Australia dominate the Ashes in 2001-02 besides clinching the World Cup 2003 in South Africa. The 67-year-old, however, did not have a good time with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL as cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar him for discrimination against Indian players and as a result he was sacked in 2009.

Mickey Arthur

South African coach Mickey Arthur could never feature in international cricket. He played for Griqualand West and Orange Free State in First-Class cricket as a right-handed batsman. He scored over 6600 runs in FC cricket but could never succeed and go on to represent his national team.

Arthur, however, made a name for himself as a coach post-retirement. He succeeded Ray Jennings as the coach of South Africa. Under his mentorship, South Africa beat India and Pakistan in consecutive series, to rise to top ODI rankings before 2007 World Cup.

Arthur, then coached domestic sides in Australia and PSL franchises, before having a prominent stint for Pakistan. He oversaw a period where Pakistan clinched the 2017 Champions Trophy and rose to top T20I rankings in 2018.

After a valuable stint with Pakistan, he was named as a coach of Sri Lanka earlier this year.

Trevor Bayliss

2019 World Cup winning coach Trevor Bayliss could not feature in international cricket. The Australian played 57 matches for New South Wales scoring 3060 runs at an average of 35.58. He also hit five centuries and 15 half-centuries but never earned a national team call-up.

Bayliss also served New South Wales as a coach before succeeding Tom Moody as the coach of Sri Lanka. He did not had a good start due to Sri Lanka’s poor performance in the 2007 World Cup and then in the series’ against Australia. In 2010 Asia Cup, Sri Lanka reached the final under his supervision, but lost the match to India.

He also coached KKR in the IPL but earned major success for England with their World Cup triumph.

Bob Woolmer

English batsman turned coach Bob Woolmer played 19 Tests. He scored 1059 runs in the longest format at an average over 33 but did not go to distance as a player.

Woolmer, however, succeeded as a coach with his progressive techniques. He had obtained qualifications as coach in 1968. His first coaching assignment came in 1994 with South Africa, where after a initial drubbing, he saw the side win 10 out of 15 Tests.

In 2004, he was appointed the coach of Pakistan. Under his supervision, Pakistan beat England in home series and drew the Test series against India 1-1. He also helped the team achieve massive success over Sri Lanka in the succeeding tournaments.

Dav Whatmore

Australian cricketer Dav Whatmore featured in seven Tests but was not up to the mark as a player. He scored 293 runs at an average over 22 but made a name for himself as a coach.

Whatmore helped cricket in Bangladesh grow. Under his coaching, Bangladesh beat Australia, South Africa and India in the 2007 World Cup. IPL side Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) finished in the fourth and fifth position under his supervision.