Andy Flower named RCB head coach: Decoding his journey
Andy Flower has become the new head coach of Royal Challengers Bangalore, the Indian Premier League franchise confirmed on August 4. He takes over from Mike Hesson and Sanjay Bangar, RCB's director of cricket and head coach, respectively, till last season. Flower is one of the most renowned coaches across the globe as he boasts a plethora of experience. Here we decode his journey.
One of the finest to represent Zimbabwe
Flower represented Zimbabwe between 1992 and 2003 and is still their highest run-getter in Tests and ODIs. He is also widely regarded as one of the greatest wicketkeeper-batters of all time. He finished with 4,794 runs in 63 Tests at 51.54 (100s: 12, 50s: 27). In ODIs, he hammered 6,786 in 213 games at 35.34 (100s: 4, 50s: 55).
Here is RCB's post
Coaching stint with England
Flower was appointed the Assistant Coach of the England team in May 2007. As he fared well in the role, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) named him the national team's head coach in 2009 following Peter Moores's departure. Under him, England won the 2009 home Ashes series 2-1. In 2010, they also went on to lift the ICC T20 World Cup.
Historic Ashes win in Australia
Flower, in 2010-11, powered England to a 3-1 Ashes series win in Australia. Later in 2011, England also whitewashed India 4-0 at home. During the series, they also became the top-ranked Test team. He also successfully led England to a 3-0 Ashes series win at home in 2013. Flower stepped down from the role following England's 0-5 drubbing in the 2013-14 Ashes in Australia.
Continued to serve ECB
Flower continued to serve England cricket even after stepping down as the head coach. In 20114, ECB appointed him as the 'Technical Director of Elite Coaching,' a role which required him to oversee County coaches. He also served England Lions as the head coach.
His stint in franchise cricket
Flower has also served many franchises across the globe. He was named the batting coach of Peshawar Zalmi in 2016. In 2020, he was appointed as head coach for Multan Sultans, St Lucia Zouks, and as Assistant coach for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He also guided the Trent Rockets to their maiden Hundred honor in 2022.
Served Afghanistan and Australia
Flower in 2021 joined the Afghanistan cricket team as the coaching consultant for that year's ICC T20 WC. Meanwhile, Australia added the experienced Flower to their backroom staff for the recently-concluded Ashes series in England. His presence certainly benefited the Aussies as the thrilling series ended in a 2-2 draw. Australia, however, retained the Ashes urn.
Consecutive third-placed finishes for LSG in the IPL
Flower joined Lucknow Super Giants ahead of IPL 2022 and has guided the franchise to the playoffs on both occasions. The team under KL Rahul's leadership finished third in IPL 2022. They finished third again in 2023. LSG were beaten by Mumbai Indians in the playoffs this year. The Super Giants officially parted ways with Flower last month.
