5 captain-coach pairs who didn't have a good working relationship
South African batting great AB de Villiers recently revealed that the former national captain Graeme Smith and ex-coach Ray Jennings did not get along with each other at all.
According to De Villiers, himself a former Proteas skipper, the duo did not talk to each other and when they did they always fought.
Jennings was South Africa’s coach for a brief period in 2004-05. On the other hand, Smith captained the team across formats for a significant period of time after being named captain in 2003 at the age of 22.
In fact, Smith holds the record for most Test wins as captain. He led South Africa in 109 games, winning 53 and losing 29.
In his recent YouTube video, De Villiers spilled the beans on the not so cordial relationship between Smith and Jennings and claimed:
“I’ve played in teams before … Ray Jennings, when Graeme Smith used to be captain, the two of them they literally didn’t speak to each other. When they did, they were fighting. It was really interesting. I won’t say it really affected the team. We sort of interacted more with Graeme.”
In the wake of De Villiers’ revelation, we look at five other captain-coach pairs who didn't have a good working relationship.
#1 Virat Kohli-Anil Kumble
There was plenty of excitement in Indian cricket when Anil Kumble was named head coach in 2016. His partnership with skipper Virat Kohli was expected to take Indian cricket forward.
However, things did not quite turn out as expected. Instead, Kumble resigned as head coach in 2017, following the Men in Blue’s loss in the Champions Trophy final to Pakistan, stating his partnership with Kohli was “untenable”.
As per several reports, the captain and coach were not on the same page. In his book 'On Board: Test.Trial.Triumph’, former BCCI administrator Ratnakar Shetty claimed that Kohli felt Kumble was 'not standing up for the players' in the team and was 'creating a tense atmosphere in the dressing room’.
Kumble was replaced as coach by Ravi Shastri and the latter went on to form a great alliance with Kohli.
#2 Sourav Ganguly-Greg Chappell
This is the most talked about rift between captain and coach in Indian cricket.
A massive controversy erupted when Greg Chappell as coach asked captain Sourav Ganguly to step down from leadership and focus on his batting during the tour of Zimbabwe in 2005.
Before the first Test, Chappell even stated that they should pick the best XI for the match, backing Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif ahead of Ganguly.
Reportedly, an irked Ganguly wanted to leave the tour but was convinced to stay on. Another rumor then emerged about him allegedly faking an injury.
The controversies continued as an email from Chappell to BCCI was leaked in which the coach criticized Ganguly and claimed that he was "mentally and physically unfit" to lead the team.
Chappell’s tumultuous tenure as India's coach ended following India’s exit from the 2007 ODI World Cup in a disastrous manner.
#3 Kevin Pietersen-Peter Moores
Kevin Pietersen and Peter Moores had a public fallout as captain and coach. As a result, the ECB sacked Moores as coach in 2009, while Pietersen also quit as skipper.
The massive crisis in England cricket began when Pietersen informed the ECB that he could not take the team forward if Moores remained the coach.
Subsequently, Moores was sacked. However, Pietersen later claimed that he was also forced to quit by the ECB. Pietersen admitted that as a person, he had nothing against Moores.
However, in his autobiography, Pietersen hit out at the former coach, referring to him as the woodpecker “tapping on our heads, all day every day”.
#4 Shahid Afridi-Waqar Younis
Back in 2011, then-Pakistan coach Waqar Younis slammed Shahid Afridi, who was leading the national team at that point.
In his tour report following a series in West Indies, he wrote about Afridi:
“...as a captain, he is very immature, has poor discipline, lacks a gameplan and is unwilling to listen to others' opinions or advice."
Waqar even admitted that Afridi walked out of a meeting over differences in selection.
Afridi was subsequently sacked as ODI captain following his outburst against Waqar. The miffed all-rounder then announced his decision to retire. However, he did a U-turn a few months later and said:
“I had said clearly that I will not play under the previous board and team management set-ups. Now that both are changed I am available for national selection again.”
Afridi played his last match for Pakistan in March 2016 during the T20 World Cup!
#5 Ross Taylor-Mike Hesson
New Zealand legend Ross Taylor and Mike Hesson had quite an awkward relationship.
The latter, as the new head coach, wanted Brendon McCullum to take over as captaincy and even told Taylor that he was "a follower, not a leader". Subsequently, McCullum replaced Taylor as captain under rather strange circumstances.
In his book 'Black and White', Taylor claimed that he was ambushed by New Zealand cricket and Hesson.
"There was method in that, they wanted to ambush me for me not to make their job harder. What person would stay on when their coach has said that?" he wrote
He further added that due to the immense mental pressure, he was unable to sleep for more than two-and-a-half hours a night leading up to a Test match in Sri Lanka.