'Fletcher will be a great foil for MS Dhoni'

The Indian team will discover he is an innovative ideas man who is always looking to be one step ahead ... He had a scientific way of presenting ideas to the players. He loved explaining to batsmen why the forward press was important against spinners. He would talk about looking under the ball because it gives you more time to pick up length. The little ideas he taught me as a player were things no other coach mentioned to me.

He will be a terrific foil for Dhoni, who will benefit from Duncan’s philosophy that the captain is always the man in charge. Duncan views his big job being on a Tuesday or Wednesday in the run-up to a Test match to prepare the team and get his points across.

Fletcher's persona should fit in perfectly with the Indian set-up because he is a man who achieves his best work behind the scenes. Naturally his knowledge of modern cricket and current players is vast and his understanding of the game's techniques extensive. But he won't try to take on the Indian media or the team's star players in the same way that Greg Chappell did, nor will he interfere unnecessarily in the way Mahendra Singh Dhoni leads the team and as a result I'm sure coach and captain will get on well together.

Fletcher may give the impression of being a curmudgeon, and at times an autocrat, but Kirsten and of course MS Dhoni will recognise and appreciate someone whose qualities tend to involve working in the background. He has never craved attention, believing that as it is the players ultimately who win or lose games, then it should be they who have the profile.

He was always keen to set up a business‑style structure – whether it was at England or Western Province, or Glamorgan before that – in which the captain was viewed as the chief executive and himself as managing director. If there were ever any doubts that whoever was appointed it would be Dhoni, along with Sachin Tendulkar, who ran the show, then they have been dispelled by Fletcher's advancement.

...Fletcher comes across as stern and not easy to please. But those who have worked with him closely say the former Zimbabwe captain doesn’t believe in ruling with an iron-fist, despite coming into a job with bunch of well-entrenched values and philosophies ... “He is not a hard taskmaster like some make him out to be. He does have his own set of rules, but doesn’t believe in imposing them upon the players,” says [Ashley] Giles. And [the expression] is mainly a result of the seriousness with which Fletcher approaches every single assignment. Like former South African fast bowler Craig Matthews says, his former coach in fact is among the best people to hang out with when it comes to relaxing after a tough day at work.

History is no guide when it comes to coaching India. You can be a cricketing genius or a coach with an enviable record; you can be highly qualified or a fresher; young or old; you can be an Indian or an outsider. But none of this matters unless your "likeability factor" is high. The players have to like you, the media have to feel involved. Officials want flexibility and regular acknowledgement that they are the bosses. Coaching is the least of the tasks.