Title of manager is more apt for a team coach

The Test squads of Australia and England both named interim coaches and featured more questions than answersIn particular Justin Langerrsquos demotion caused Australian hysteria to reach the Monty Python comedy stage where someone screeches ldquoHersquos not the Australian coach hersquos a very naughty boyrdquoCricket fans tend to take more notice of who is or isnrsquot the coach rather than focusing on the important matter of the appointed captain Pat Cummins and his charges take the wickets make the runs and handle the chances Itrsquos them not the coach who will win or lose the upcoming series in PakistanItrsquos all in the headAnybody who thinks international players need coaching and mollycoddling 24 hours seven days a week is confused International techniques donrsquot disintegrate Players might encounter a problem along the way but what goes wrong is generally in the head A decent natter with a preferred senior player in the team usually sets the cricketer on the right pathWhy are fellow players the best international coaches For starters they are playing against the same players They are also out in the middle in the heat of battle and understand the trying consequences They also see their fellow competitors regularly and will quickly notice any change in technique or mental approachItrsquos much more important to have wellcredentialed selectors choosing the right squad than it is to have the public ranting about coachesThe first mistake in this exercise was to use the title head coach Anybody looking after a team should have the word lsquomanagerrsquo in his title If the captain with the help of a few trusted aides runs the cricket side of the game and the management concentrates on offfield matters then the team will be very competitiveAn international coach should be something the Australian team travels in on a tour of EnglandCummins is a smart cricketer He is a good captain because he understands bowling approaches the game with a commonsense attitude and has tough competitors around him Therersquos no doubt Cummins will experience tougher days than what he encountered against England He will also have to fight through the occasional frustrationmdashthatrsquos the life of a captain Nevertheless Cummins will establish his reputation as a good captain for the simple reason that hersquos a solid leader His captaincy will be recognised because of his own effortsOn the other side of the world England under the temporary stewardship of former skipper Andrew Strauss embarked on a monumental sacking spree In addition to the three members of the hierarchy who bit the dust Straussrsquo contingent did away with eight players who toured Australia and appointed an interim coach in the form of Paul Collingwood There were some good moves among those made by the Strauss group The dropping of ageing stars Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad took courage and signalled a new direction for the teamThe retention of an inconsistent Ollie Pope displayed faith in a talented but disoriented playerThe elevation of a credentialed gloveman in Ben Foakes was a welcome trend However the one move that could have made a real differencemdasha change of leadershipmdashwas avoided Therersquos no doubt that England with good strong leadership could be a much improved side on itrsquos Australian showingEngland need a strong leaderJoe Root deserves the title lsquoprominent batsmanrsquo but the team will not achieve its potential under his stewardship Root is not a good leadermdashnever has been Who could England nominate as captain That is a major problem Apart from Ben Stokes therersquos not another name in the squad that stands out as a potential skipper Nevertheless England badly need to unearth a strong leader and to do it quickly If they donrsquot have a skipper instilling direction into the Test team they will continue to struggle against the major cricket nations