Western Australia coach Mickey Arthur will entertain the prospect of coaching Australia’s national cricket side if he’s offered the role, but says it will be hard to prise him away from the Warriors.
Arthur, who guided South Africa to the No.1 ranking in Test and one-day cricket last decade, has two years left to run on his contract with WA and said he and his family were loving life in Perth.
However, the 43-year-old said he would be silly not to consider any approach from Cricket Australia to replace the soon-to-be-axed Tim Nielsen, who has been told he would have to re-apply for the revamped coaching role after the current Sri Lankan series.
“You’d be foolish not to consider it but, as I’ve said and I’ve always said, I’m incredibly happy with the job I’ve got at the moment,” Arthur said on Tuesday.
“I’m incredibly happy working in WA and I’m incredibly happy with the structures we’ve put in place.
“I’d like to see this job until the end but timing unfortunately is not everything in life and, if something like that (a job offer to coach Australia) did arise, then you’d have to consider it.
“It is flattering and it’s nice to see your name in the mix for something like that. But to be brutally honest, I haven’t given it any more thought than that.”
Former Australian Test all-rounder Tom Moody, who enjoyed a successful coaching stint with Sri Lanka, and former wicketkeeper Steve Rixon have also thrown their hats into the mix, with Test great Allan Border urging CA to choose a local coach.
Arthur said he was satisfied with what he’d achieved in international ranks with South Africa, who were ranked fifth in Tests and sixth in one-dayers before he worked his magic.
“I achieved my goals in international cricket by getting South Africa to No.1 in the world in both forms of the game,” Arthur said.
“I guess the one thing I didn’t get was a World Cup or a Champions Trophy win.
“But I was very happy with my time at South Africa and I think I’ve got more unfinished business with WA to be honest.”
Meanwhile, Arthur said the time was right for Shaun Marsh to be handed his Test debut in the upcoming series against Sri Lanka.
Marsh and NSW run machine Usman Khawaja are battling for a berth at No.6 in the Test side, but Arthur said it was just a matter of time before there would be room for both.
“I think both those players will play Test cricket together somewhere down the line,” Arthur said.
“Shaun Marsh is such a fine player. He’s done all the hard yards and I do think he’s ready to play Test cricket.”
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