Don't See Any Australian Bias from Where I Sit, says KXIP Coach Brad Hodge

In the ongoing season of Indian Premier League (IPL), the experts and broadcaster have sensed a biasedness from Australian coaches towards their country’s players, and Brad Hodge, Punjab’s head coach, is not ready to accept the fact.

Three of the four Australian coaches in the IPL has come under scrutiny for rather bizarre reasons. It was former South African skipper Graeme Smith who brought up the issue, and it is arguably for some valid reasons.

Their persistence to go with players who have underperformed have had a severe impact on the eventual outcomes of their campaign.

Only Sunrisers Hyderabad, who has an Australian coach in Tom Moody managed to qualify for the playoffs without any hiccups what so ever. Barring Hyderabad, all the three other teams have found the campaign to be quite tricky at times.

The bias for Australian players

Delhi Daredevils under the mentorship of Ricky Ponting was the first to get eliminated from the tournament. Kings XI Punjab under Brad Hodge also lost six of their last seven matches which prevented them from going through to the playoffs.

They finished 2^nd from the last. Delhi’s persistence with an underperforming Glenn Maxwell was bound to raise eyebrows, and it did. The all-rounder managed to score just 169 runs in 12 matches at a below-par average of 14.08.

It has been the same case with D’Arcy Short, the Rajasthan Royals opening batsman. He played seven games and scored only 115 runs.

Even players like Aaron Finch was given an extended run in favour of David Miller despite his mediocre performances. He scored 134 runs in ten matches at an average of 16. However, Brad Hodge doesn’t see any biases in the team’s selections.

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Hodge doesn’t see any bias

“Look, I don’t see any bias at all from where I sit,” Hodge was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz. “We’ve got a few Australian players in our squad. I guess that’s what’s he (Smith) is hinting at, but I think what he’s suggesting is that those coaches will have a first vision at the Big Bash. A lot of us have also played and coached in other T20 leagues as well. So, I think Graeme might be assuming that once the South African T20 league starts up, if it does, then there might be more exposure for those guys.

“England is only now just allowing all their players into the tournament. So there are certain restrictions, I guess, which can influence. But I don’t think (there’s any merit in) what he’s suggesting. Everyone’s done their homework extremely intelligently walking into an auction. So, I don’t think there’s any bias. Generally, we know that over the course of the last 20 years Australian cricket has been pretty good. No bias towards Australian players as cricketers,” he added.

Hodge’s earlier coaching and playing assignments in IPL 

Meanwhile, it must be noted it is not Hodge’s first assignment as a coach of an IPL franchise. He was the coach of Gujarat Lions who played for just two years in the absence of Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings.

Hodge had earlier played for the Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders and the Kochi Tuskers Kerala as a player. Hence being a veteran in this format he was handed over this role for Punjab.

“That experience of Gujarat Lions has certainly helped,” he said. “If you’ve been on that side of the fence as a player, you try and understand as a coach if you put yourself back in their shoes of what they want and need to perform at the highest level. Then you have the management side of things where you constantly are dealing with people all the way from the playing group to the staff to senior management to the owners. That’s something which I think if you haven’t been in the IPL before as a coach, it can hit you pretty hard.

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Coaches always try to get better and evolve from past experiences 

“As coaches, we’re always trying to get better and evolve and learn from our past experiences. Any time that you have experience in the IPL, I think is a little slice of gold. I probably was more aggressive as a player than I am as a coach. I think you have to be as well-balanced as you possibly can because you know you are managing a lot of people or doing your best to do so. That’s probably the one difference.

“The difference also is that as a coach, physically you can’t get out there and make a difference. I think that’s one of the things that I first noticed on transitioning from player to coach. Sitting on the bench, you’re looking at the run-rate getting up to 10 or 11, and you think I want to get out there and I want to try and get us over the line. But when you’re sitting in the dugout, all you’re doing is having faith in the rest of the crew to get the job done. You trust as a coach or manager we’re just there to make sure that those players are in the best possible space to get those jobs done.”

Tournaments like IPL has owner’s influence 

We are all aware of the fact that the in a tournament like IPL there is a role of the owners who are involved in running a team. After yet another disappointing season for Punjab, the owners might look at different ideas.

When asked if this could turn out to be a hindrance for the coach, Hodge was in support of the owners.

“It’s a part of it. I think you have to be well aware that the owners have put a lot of time, effort and money into this franchise, so they’ve skin in the game. They want to succeed. The good thing is I’m pretty passionate to try and help them try and succeed,” Hodge said.

“You know the history of the last ten years for the Kings hasn’t been an easy one. They’re desperate for success, but might have to be a little bit more patient, unfortunately, but we’re certainly all on the same page about what we want to achieve. And that’s propelling this franchise up to the highest level it possibly can. And I’ve got full respect for that; I can see the passion in the owners.”

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Hodge hopes to please the owners in the coming year

Hodge has signed a three-year deal with Punjab. However, their wait for the first ever IPL title continues. Hodge still has a couple of seasons more to prove his worth. He is hopeful of putting a smile on the owner’s faces the next time around.

“It was a challenge coming into an environment where I didn’t know a great amount of the people, that included team, staff, captain. A lot of time has been spent trying to understand them and get the best out of them…make sure they’re comfortable with doing the roles and their jobs. That’s one thing where coming into a brand new team is difficult. Probably the second year would be easier…then everyone would also understand me as well.”