South Africa rope in Michael Hussey ahead of the T20 series
Former Australian cricketer Michael Hussey will be helping the South African team as their second batting consultant, along with Gary Kirsten, reports ESPNcricinfo. Hussey has joined the Proteas squad who are currently touring India.
Hussey has been brought to the team to help them prepare for the upcoming World Twenty20 (T20) in India. He definitely knows the Indian conditions better than anyone else as he has been playing in the Indian Premier League since its inception.
South Africa's T20 captain Faf du Plessis said that the Australian can teach the techniques and other aspects to the new members of the team very well with his vast experience.
"Mike is such a good guy from a coaching point of view. He has got a great batting mind so the young batters coming into the team, he's the best guy you can learn from," Du Plessis said. "He does all the right things. He trains hard and fits in beautifully into our team. I think we are very lucky to have him in our side."
The 40-year-old will be working as South Africa's second batting consultant as they already have their former coach Kirsten on a 50-day-a-year contract. Hussey was with the Proteas team during the 2015 Cricket World Cup before the match against India and he talked about what is needed in the team.
"To win World Cups, you need world class performers and you look down the list of the South African team, you've got AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn, JP Duminy, Morne Morkel. You need those guys to fire and play well in World Cups and then that fires the other guys," Hussey said at the World Cup. "But quite often you need some unsung heroes as well.
"I look at the South Africa team and see a lot of those world class stars and there might be some unsung heroes like a David Miller or one of the other bowlers can come in and do a job as well."
The next big in front of the South African team is India, where they are scheduled to play three T20Is, five one-day international and four Test matches in the 72-day long tour starting from October 2.
A fan spotted Hussey during the South Africa’s practice match against India ‘A’ and tweeted the below photo: