The only cricketer to win IPL both as player and head coach of a team
So, how would you feel if you were part of an IPL winning side in one edition, and then donned the role of the Head Coach of another IPL side, and lead them to victory as well? Wouldn’t you be on cloud nine? Ask Darren Lehmann, and he will tell you how it feels.
The former Australian cricketer was part of the Shane Warne led victorious Rajasthan Royals squad in the 2008 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The current 51-year-old played just 2 matches for the Rajasthan side and scored 18 runs in the first IPL edition. And, in what can be described as a fairytale run, the Rajasthan side, which was not fancied to win at the start of the tournament, sensationally beat all the odds to emerge triumphantly. They beat the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 3 wickets in a pulsating summit clash to lift the title.
Lehmann’s tryst with the IPL as a player ended with the 2008 season, but he continued to be associated with the T20 tournament in another way. The Aussie took over as the Head Coach of the Deccan Chargers (DC) in the 2009 edition of the IPL, and continued in that position for 4 years, till 2012.
Coaching triumph
And guess what? In the very first year that Lehmann took over as the Head Coach, the Deccan Chargers (DC) side won the IPL. The tournament was held in South Africa, and the Deccan Chargers (DC), led by another Aussie, Adam Gilchrist beat the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) side by just 6 runs, to win their maiden IPL title. Surely, Lehmann is a lucky charm, isn’t it?
As far as his international career is concerned, Lehmann was a part of the Australian squad in the late 1990s and the 2000s. He played 117 ODIs for Australia and scored 3078 runs at a good average of 38.48. Lehmann was also a handy spinner and scalped 52 wickets in ODI cricket as well. The left-hander was also part of 2 victorious Australian World Cup-winning squads, in 1999 and 2003.
Lehmann retired from international cricket in the year 2005, and since then has gone on to become one of the most successful and respected coaches in the cricketing world. Not only has he coached IPL teams, he has also coached the Australian cricket team for 6 years, between 2013 and 2018.
