Heath Streak quits as Bangladesh bowling coach, looks forward to coaching in India
Former Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak will be quitting as Bangladesh’s fast bowling coach at the end of this month, as he has applied for a job at India’s National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. He has expressed his desire to coach in the academy and hence will not renew his contract with the Bangladesh Cricket Board.
"I have decided that I shall leave my role as a national bowling coach when my contract expires at the end the month. I feel now is the right time for me and my family to make this decision and I look forward to the future as I look to continue my coaching career," he said in the statement. Streak announced via Twitter on Thursday.
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The 42-year-old bowling all-rounder is one of the best cricketers Zimbabwe has ever produced, with impressive batting returns of 2943 runs in 159 innings and bowling figures of 239 wickets in 185 innings, in his 15-year long ODI career.
Streak, who is currently coaching the Indian Premier League title contenders, Gujarat Lions, was signed by Bangladesh – currently placed in the ninth position in the ICC ODI rankings – in 2014 and has been credited with the team’s successful run in One-Day Internationals in the past two years.
Bangladesh have been impressive since the past one year, reaching the knockout stage for the first time in the Cricket World Cup in 2015 and defeating some of the best teams –Pakistan, India and South Africa – in the same year, to qualify for the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy in England.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s Chief, Akram Khan, confirmed the news saying the Zimbabwean coach had emailed them to inform them about quitting as their coach when the contract expires.
"Streak informed us through an email on Thursday that he will not renew his contract," Khan said.
Khan stated that the BCB will be assigning a new coach at the earliest, and the possible contenders would be the Sri Lankans Champaka Ramanayake and Chaminda Vaas, Pakistan's Aaqib Javed and Venkatesh Prasad of India.