Miscellaneous

Pakistan Sign Kiesel (10 Nov 1995)

Dan Kiesel, the masseur who successfully `thumped' Sri Lankan cricket teams, here and abroad and who was unceremoniously dumped for Sri Lanka team's tour of Australia starting later this month, has been requested by the Pakistan Cricket Board

10-Nov-1995
Not wanted by the Sri Lankan team to Australia: Pakistan sign on masseur Kiesel
by ELMO RODRIGOPULLE
Dan Kiesel, the masseur who successfully `thumped' Sri Lankan cricket teams, here and abroad and who was unceremoniously dumped for Sri Lanka team's tour of Australia starting later this month, has been requested by the Pakistan Cricket Board to fly to Australia and help the Pakistan team now battling Australia for the unofficial world championship tag.
Ghulam Mustafa Khan, Additional secretary, of the Pakistan Cricket Board in a fax to Kiesel states: Please proceed to Brisbane, Australia by whatever convenient flight so as to report to manager of the Pakistan Cricket team, Mr. Intikhab Alam. The team is residing at Sheraton, Brisbane. Please treat this as urgent. Kiesel took a flight to Brisbane on Wednesday night.
Kiesel was in charge of many Sri Lanka teams since taking over the job of masseur from the Singer World Series here in 1994. He then accompanied teams to Zimbabwe, South Africa for the Mandela trophy and then to New Zealand where Sri Lanka won its first ever historic test match abroad. He then went with the team to Sharjah for the Asia Cup.
Kiesel was also the masseur with the Sri Lankan teams that won the test and one-day series in Pakistan and then followed it up with the Singer Championship trophy in Sharjah. But when the Sri Lanka team to Australia was picked, it came as a surprise to note the omission of Kiesel from the job he had performed so admirably and successfully. Kiesel was replaced by Australian Alex Kountouri for the Australian tour.
The Pakistan management and cricketers would have watched the way he was doing things with the Sri Lanka cricketers when the Sri Lankan team was in Pakistan and on learning that the Lankans were not wanting him would have jumped at the idea of having him with the team in Australia.
It was former Australian pace ace Dennis Lillee and Rumesh Ratnayake who introduced Kiesel to the Sri Lanka team.
Source :: Lanka Internet Services