IPL 2022: Andy Flower, Daniel Vettori contenders to become Lucknow’s head coach

The upcoming season of the IPL is all set to welcome two new teams, as Lucknow and Ahmedabad franchise will also feature in the league. As per the recent turn of events, the Lucknow franchise has finalized two candidates for the head coach position.

According to reports, Andy Flower and Daniel Vettori are two contenders for the job with the former most likely to get a green signal ahead of the latter. Gary Kirsten and Trevor Bayliss were also reported to be in the contention but they did not make it to the final list.

The reason behind Flower getting an edge is that the former Zimbabwe player has already worked with KL Rahul who is in talks to be the team’s captain. Both of them have worked together during their stint with Punjab Kings and share a good bond. However, it has also been reported that the duo suggested their respective names for the high-profile jobs.

The Sanjiv Goenka-owned franchise hasn’t received a go-ahead from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) yet and thus an announcement on the same isn’t expected soon according to Cricbuzz. Things are at pause owing to the uncertainty over the CVC issue. CVC is the other firm that won the bid for a new IPL franchise. However, the firm has been in talks due to its investment in a betting company in the UK.

Andy Flower had served as Punjab Kings coach for two years

Flower recently decided to step down from his role at the Punjab Kings. A BCCI official had informed about the same.

“He sent his resignation to the team recently. It has been accepted. There is a good chance that he goes to one of the new teams (Lucknow or Ahmedabad),” a BCCI official had said. 

Flower has a plethora of experience under his sleeves. He has previously worked as a coach in England for more than a decade with the national team. He received his maiden IPL assignment ahead of the IPL 2020 season. In his stint, he worked alongside India’s former cricketer Anil Kumble for Punjab Kings for the last two seasons.