England appoint Matthew Mott as white-ball coach
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have officially appointed Matthew Mott as England’s white-ball head coach on May 18 (Monday). Mott, who was serving as the Australia women’s team coach, has resigned from that post to take the England job, with the upcoming three-ODI series against the Netherlands set to be his first appointment with the team.
Mott had emerged as the frontrunner for the job, pipping former England star Paul Collingwood as he was preferred by the ECB selection panel – comprising of Chief Executive Officer Tom Harrison, Managing Director of England’s Men’s Cricket Rob Key, Strategic Adviser Andrew Strauss and Performance Director Mo Bobat – over the other contenders. His appointment comes after the ECB adopted the split coaching policy, having only recently unveiled Brendon McCullum as the red-ball coach.
As for Mott, the 48-year-old has represented Queensland and Victoria as a player before turning into a coach after his retirement. He has been with the Australia women’s team since 2015, which was after he had served as head coach at New South Wales and Glamorgan alongside brief stints with Australia’s A teams. Mott has also been associated with the IPL, as he took charge as the Kolkata Knight Riders’ assistant coach in 2009.
Delighted to accept the opportunity with England: Matthew Mott
“I am delighted to accept the opportunity to take this white-ball role with England. Whilst I am Australian, I have deep connections, and several of my closest friends are in the UK, having spent considerable time in Scotland, Wales and England, both as a player and coach,” Mott was quoted by an ECB release.
“When this role became available, I was attracted by the chance to work with such an established and successful team under the astute leadership of Eoin Morgan and now Rob Key, whom I have always admired as an excellent cricket mind,” he added.
“The idea of the split roles and the chance to work alongside Brendon McCullum in his red-ball role is an opportunity that I am incredibly enthusiastic about and certainly provides the right balance for my family as we embark on this exciting journey. It was always going to take something special to leave the role that I have loved for the past seven years with the Australian Women’s team. However, I genuinely believe that the time is right to play a role in helping the England Men’s ODI and T20 group continue to evolve as one of the best teams in the world,” he said further.
Eoin Morgan and Matthew Mott will format formidable partnership: Rob Key
Commenting on the appointment of Mott, ECB MD Rob Key, said: “It is a real privilege to be able to announce Mathew Mott as the Head Coach of our men’s white-ball team. He has had an incredible coaching journey with so many varied experiences that have brought him to this point where he was outstanding in the interview process and the perfect fit for our white-ball teams. We are lucky to be able to appoint a Head Coach that has not only been involved in international cricket for the last few years but he has also worked in franchise cricket around the world. More importantly, what he has done with the Australian Women’s team is what will be asked of him to achieve for our men’s white-ball sides. I’m confident that in Eoin Morgan and Matthew Mott, we have a formidable partnership that can push for more trophies in the coming years and that Matthew will be able to oversee any transition that team will go through in the future. Furthermore, Matthew will also help us invest in English coaches getting them as much experience as possible over the next few years.”
