Jonathan Trott named Afghanistan's new head coach

Jonathan Trott has taken over as Afghanistan's new head coach, with his first assignment a T20I tour of Ireland in August. This is 41-year-old's first time in charge of a men's senior team in international cricket, although he has had a few stints as batting coach for England and was most recently a consultant with Scotland during the 2021 T20 World Cup.

Trott had a storied time with England, especially in Test cricket where he made 3835 runs in 52 matches, and was one of the pillars of their Ashes triumph in 2010-11. At his peak a player capable of batting long periods and constructing massive innings, Trott's success also translated well into ODI cricket where me made 2819 runs at an average of 51 with four hundreds and 22 fifties.

Towards the end of his career, though, the intensity of his game took a toll on him and he needed a break from cricket in 2013-14. Trott eventually retired from England duty in 2015.

"I'm honoured and excited to have the opportunity to take one of international cricket's most exciting teams through what is a huge year for their development as a team." Trott was quoted as saying by an Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) press release. "I also believe that Afghanistan has proved to be a hot-bed of talent, and has produced players capable of playing the game in their own style and with unrivalled passion. I can't wait to get to work with a group of players who are clearly capable of generating results in a style that will make the people of Afghanistan proud."

Afghanistan had unveiled Graham Thorpe as their new head coach in March 2022, but two months later he fell seriously ill, prompting a change of plans.

Despite this uncertainty, Afghanistan won each of their six limited-overs matches on a tour of Zimbabwe with Raees Khan Ahmadzai as interim head coach, former captain Nawroz Mangal as batting coach, former Pakistan bowler Umar Gul as bowling coach, and South Africa's Ryan Maron as fielding coach (only for six months).

Afghanistan's Ireland tour will begin on August 9 with the first of five T20Is. The side is also set to feature in this year's Asia Cup in the UAE next month and the T20 World Cup in Australia in October. There is also a three-match ODI series pending against Pakistan, likely to be played at a neutral venue.