The newly-appointed bowling coach of the Bangladesh cricket team, Ian Pont, arrived on Thursday and took no time to meet his pupils practising at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
Pont, the former bowling consultant of county side Northamptonshire, reached Dhaka in the morning and just dropped his luggage at the hotel before rushing to stadium to get introduced to the players.
He was welcomed by head coach Jamie Siddons, who has now as many as three assistants with the arrival of the Englishman, a former Essex first bowler who also represented Nottinghamshire and Natal in first-class cricket. Pont returned to his hotel after introduction.
He, however, appeared excited about his new job during his brief stay at the stadium.
‘I am very excited about coming to Bangladesh as it is a Test playing nation, the fans are behind them and I think there are lot for me to learn from them as well as share my experience with them,’ Pont told reporters
‘I have spent three years with the Dutch team but it was very difficult because as an ICC associate member country there was hardly any money and I had to work on a limited budget,’ Pont said.
‘I am here on a short-term job initially and let me see how I can help the fast bowlers. We have New Zealand and Zimbabwe series and thereafter the World Cup, so it would be an exciting six months ahead,’ he said.
‘I think they need a good leadership with Jamie Siddons in charge. They have got a new captain who also is leading the bowling attack, he has a big role to play,’ said the 49-year-old bowling coach.
‘With Julien [Fountain] as a fielding coach we have got some discipline on the field. I think in all the departments now we have got some disciplined coaches. But this is a long hole, you know, you are not expecting to pull trees up overnight,’ he said.
‘We are not expecting to win the World Cup, it’s a long journey and as long as they [players] respond I think the guys have all the chance of having success,’ Pont added.
‘I cannot comment on what happened before me coming but looking at the team generally the one thing that strikes me is that they are really excited about their own game of cricket.’
Pont added that being an Englishman he has no problem with Siddons, an Australian, although his countrymen always maintain a love-and-hate relationship with their counterparts from the other side of the ocean.
‘We don’t like the Australians on the field, but off the field they are great guys. We all love each other and cricket is a religion all over the world and it brings players together never separates them,’ said Pont.
‘Julien is an old friend of mine although I haven’t seen him for a long time. I don’t know Jamie and just met him out here; I heard very good things about him from Andy Flower who is a friend of mine,’ he said.
Speaking about his previous works, Pont claimed to have transformed South African fast bowler Dale Steyn from a wild horse to a world beater when he was at Essex.
‘I worked with Dale when he was just 19 at Essex. He was wild then but with proper guidance he is now regarded as one of the best in the world,’ Pont said.
He, however, reminded it may not be possible for him to produce another Steyn in Bangladesh in such a short span of time as his contract runs only until the World Cup 2011.
‘Well, the World Cup is World Cup and I can’t change the diary. Two weeks before the Kiwis arrived is not ideal obviously because you would like to have a longer time but here is a point as this is a longer journey towards the World Cup,’ he said.
New Zealand is the first step, it gives me chance to have a look at the bowlers, assess them and see what they need to do and the second series against Zimbabwe is a bit more relevant because that will be a preamble to the World Cup. And then we have time in January to build up for the World Cup, so these all are little mini steps,’ Pont pointed out.
‘The potential in Bangladesh is huge and is almost untamed Tigers and I think our role is to just get some discipline in and make them excited about their cricket,’ said the Englishman.
