Will Aussie Buchanan lift New Zealand cricket?
Columnist By Kersi Meher-Homji, 11 May 2011 Kersi Meher-Homji is a Roar Expert
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Tall, bespectacled and analytical, John Buchanan, 58, is facing the strongest challenge of his roller-coaster career. He has been appointed the Director of New Zealand Cricket (NZC). From 1999 to 2007 he had coached the Australian cricket team with distinction. Under him as the coach, Australia lifted World Cups in 2003 and 2007.
At one stage, his record as Australia’s coach read: Played 16 Tests, won 16. You can’t better this achievement, can you?
Since his replacement, Australia has been struggling. He had his detractors, Shane Warne in particular. Warne defined a coach as a bus, which drives you from place A to place B!
He thought poorly of cricket coaches, especially when Buchanan told him where to bowl and do physical exercise.
Stuart MacGill was also not a Buchanan fan.
Warne, 41, has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket when IPL 2011 ends next month. Being a genius, he could reach lofty heights without being coached.
But a good coach can make a huge difference to most players and teams.
Look at how Gary Kirsten converted a struggling Indian team into a champion side in both Tests and one-day internationals (ODIs) within four years.
A national coach is unlike the coach of an under-12 or under-19 side.
He does not have to show Test cricketers how to bat, bowl or field.
He has to make players mentally strong, giving them self-confidence without making them too cocky.
With the help of computer technology, he shows them their strengths and weaknesses and makes them aware of their opponents’ weak points. Also, he makes players fitter and augments individual brilliance with team harmony.
Buchanan and Kirsten, to give recent examples, tick all these boxes.
The role of Buchanan in the continued success of Australia can never be forgotten.
Of course, Australia had talent – the Waughs, Warne, Gilchrist, McGrath, Hayden, Langer, MacGill among others.
They contributed strongly to Australia becoming and remaining invincible for almost a decade.
Steve Waugh as captain and Buchanan as coach made eleven cricketers play as one unit.
Of course, Geoff Marsh and Bob Simpson before Buchanan, had done the ground work as efficient coaches, but the latter’s exit has left a huge hole.
In his own way, Buchanan (‘Buck’ to friends) contributed largely, whatever Warne may say.
Australia is not invincible any more. If Buchanan was retained as the coach, he perhaps could have harnessed the talents of Ponting, Clarke, Lee, Tait, Hussey, Johnson, Haddin et al much better and converted Australia into a winning team.
Oh, for a Buchanan to translate Mitchell Johnson’s erratic talent into world-shaking performances!
It’s all hypothetical, of course, and some Roarers may disagree, but I am an advocate of this theory.
A coach does make a difference. Compare India under Kirsten as the coach with the team under Greg Chappell: India under Chappell did not reach Super Eight stage in the 2007 World Cup. India under Kirsten lifted the 2011 World Cup with practically the same team.
With Kirsten as the coach, India leap-frogged to number one ranking in Test cricket and number two in ODIs, besides being the current World Cup champs.
An inspiring coach need not be a Test great or even a Test cricketer.
Buchanan played only eight Sheffield Shield matches for Queensland in 1978-79 as a batsman, averaging a poor 12.30.
But as the Queensland coach he did the near-impossible. He made Queensland win the Sheffield Shield for the first time ever in 1994-95. It was a fairytale, Cinderella marrying the prince.
Although New Zealand Cricket Chief Executive Justin Vaughan was not taking calls, sources confirmed to The Sports Encounter on Saturday that Buchanan has been inducted in the NZC and he would officially start working from June.
Vaughan has a high opinion of the former Aussie coach. The local media quoted him saying last week, “John’s appointment is an exciting one for New Zealand Cricket. He has a great cricketing pedigree and will provide outstanding leadership as NZC look to move forward.”
New Zealand is currently ranked number eight in Test cricket (only above Bangladesh) and seven in ODIs. Can Buchanan lift the Kiwis in the next few years?
With ‘Buck’ as a coach I would have said, “Yes”. But as an administrator, I can only surmise: “Time will tell”.
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May 11th 2011 @ 8:42am
Darwin Stubbie said | May 11th 2011 @ 8:42am | Report comment
Not quite what I expected from the headline as this is more an overview of Buchanan’s coaching career – which really doesn’t tally with his new role with NZC as obviously they’ve got John Wright as coach of the Black Caps …
Wright himself is no slouch as a coach and if these two can forge a good working relationship then NZ may well start to perform to a consistent level again .. they kiwis most recent successful period was under Rixon – someone would was able to identify a group of players, form a gameplan and get them to buy into his goals and ideas … even in their golden period of the 80′s the kiwis have always relied on the sum of their parts … both Wright and Buchanan need to have a similar strategy
May 11th 2011 @ 10:53am
garyb58 said | May 11th 2011 @ 10:53am | Report comment
I met the man just before we won the sheffield shield in 1994. he is the real deal and calls a spade a spade. he wasnt afraid to upset the pretty boys with his coaching style. the writings on the wall. N Z can only benefit from his involvement.
May 11th 2011 @ 11:07am
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 11th 2011 @ 11:07am | Report comment
Darwin, I agree I wrote more about Buchanan’s coaching ability than on his administrative expertise. But if you are a good coach you see things more from a player’s point of view rather than CEOs and chairmen who concentrate more on the running of the game.
As ‘Buck’ is an analytical person he will be an asset to the New Zealand cricket team.
John Wright and Buchanan working together will be beneficial to the struggling New Zealanders.
May 11th 2011 @ 12:20pm
sheek said | May 11th 2011 @ 12:20pm | Report comment
Hi Kersi,
NZ cricket is a strange beast. It would be good for world cricket if New Zealand was strong, but this is not always the case.
You would think the Buchanan-Wright partnership can only spell P-O-S-I-T-I-V-E for NZ cricket!
May 11th 2011 @ 8:49pm
The recalcitrant said | May 11th 2011 @ 8:49pm | Report comment
The biggest problem a New Zealand coach will always have is akin to a baker who only has poor quality flour, salt and sugar to bake his bread.
Don’t expect him to turn the pig’s ear, being NZ cricket, into a silk purse.
They are good honest toilers without setting the world on fire.
May 11th 2011 @ 10:50pm
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 11th 2011 @ 10:50pm | Report comment
Recalcitrant, you are too negative about NZ cricket. For a small country it has produced some great cricketers over the years. For example Martin Donnelly, Bert Sutcliffe, John Reid, Walter and Sir Richard Hadlee, Martin Crowe.
Even now they have talent in Daniel Vettori and Ross Taylor.
Someone has to harness their expertise. The two Johns (Wright and Buchanan) can make a difference. They may not get among top-4 but will scale higher in the ranking.
Bread needs yeast to rise. The two Johns may provide just that, who knows?
May 12th 2011 @ 1:17pm
The recalcitrant said | May 12th 2011 @ 1:17pm | Report comment
Would love to see the NZers perform better, but we must be realistic. They simply do not have the population and John Buchanan is not the man for the job.
I could have taken the team Buchanan had at his disposal to success in Australian cricket.
A coach at that level is too late. They need coaching from ages 8 to 14 years old. The old 10,000 hours principle if you want greatness.
May 12th 2011 @ 8:06am
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 12th 2011 @ 8:06am | Report comment
My comment on the two Johns (Wright as coach and Buchanan as the Head of NZ cricket) may need revision. Wright is in the running for a position as Australia’s batting coach.
This is ANZ at its paradoxical best. An Aussie as head of Kiwi cricket and a Kiwi coaching Oz! What next? Would love to have Ian Chappell’s comments.
May 12th 2011 @ 11:44pm
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 12th 2011 @ 11:44pm | Report comment
Recalcitrant,
In my post I had written that the job of a national coach is not to teach players how to bowl but where to bowl, know the weaknesses of your opponents, develop self confidence and killer instinct.
Agree, Buchanan had a winning team from 1999 to 2007. But he could have converted Johnson, for instance into a match-winner, would have shown Michael Clarke and Ponting where they were going wrong in their footwork and Ponting when leading after the retirements of Warne, Gilly, McGrath, Hayden, MacGill. He had no Plan B.
Of late Australian bowlers have been gifting so many wides and no-balls to opposing bats; Tait, Lee, Johnson among others. Alastair Cook’s 600 plus runs could have been cut to under 400 in the recent Ashes series. A good coach would have corrected these silly avoidable mistakes.
May 13th 2011 @ 3:56pm
Bayman said | May 13th 2011 @ 3:56pm | Report comment
Kersi,
There are those who consider the position of Australian Batting Coach to be a privilege. This latest development may well prove the old saying, “A privilege granted becomes a Wright”.
As for New Zealand cricket, as far as I am concerned they can go and get Bucked.
Seeerrriiioooouuuussssly, the whole issue of coaches leaves me a little cold. On the single issue of our wayward friend Mitchell Johnson, who is responsible for fixing his problems. Tim Neilsen as head coach, Troy Cooley (now McDermott) as bowling coach or Ricky Ponting (now Michael Clarke) as his captain. Just imagine if they’re all saying something different.
I love the old sayings and much of that is because, despite the passage of time, these sayings are still relevant. Things like, “Too many cooks spoil the broth”. Only in 2011 do people think these old sayings are just that, old sayings. With no modern relevance. Who has broth today? What is broth? Perhaps you prefer, “Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it”
In a cricketing sense I could possibly apply to first “old saying” to Johnson and his plethora of coaches and captains. Everyone has a theory and Johnno is simply too dumb to work out what is appropriate and what is crap. Ian Chappell, or Allan Border, would just have said, “Bowl it where I bloody well tell you to or give me the ball and I’ll find someone else!” One way or another, the problem is solved. There’s no rule which says Johnson must be in the team. Except in 2011.
The second “old saying” could just as easily be applied to the former skipper, Ricky Ponting. Pushing hard at the ball, with hard hands, or playing the pull shot before he assesses the pitch have got him dismissed in his first few balls on several occasions in the last few years. With all those coaches available – he still does it. Why, one might ask, does he imagine the result will be different each subsequent time. He is the very essence of an optimist – one who believes that despite things being exactly the same, this time the result will be different. Alternatively, we are witnessing a failure to learn (from history).
It is a modern line of thinking that if the coach fails, get a new coach. How about no coach at all. Simpson was appointed primarily so Allan Border could concentrate more on the important things – to relieve the work load. Over the years the job has evolved into an absolutely necessary extension of the team and even better if we could have even more coaches involved. Hence batting, bowling, fielding, sports phsychologist, media, knife and fork, tieing a windsor knot, toilet training, map reading, appropriate level of arrogance.
Has the game really changed that much – or have more and more people seen the opportunity to ride the gravy train? If the latter is true it will only get worse from here. And we still won’t really, actually need a coach.
May 14th 2011 @ 2:33pm
Kersi Meher-Homji said | May 14th 2011 @ 2:33pm | Report comment
Thank you Bayman for your thought-provoking comments. Loved your phrase: This latest development may well prove the old saying, “A privilege granted becomes a Wright”. Very clever.
A frustrated coach may well exclaim: “You can take a Johnno to water but cannot make him drink and bowl straight”! I believe Johnson is married now. One hopes he obeys her more than he does his skipper and coach. Else he’ll be in trouble!