WHAT NEXT FOR FLOWER?
"Let's make him deny it" was LBJ's old dictum, the idea being that a denial can be just as telling as a confirmation. In the absence of a clear answer from Andy Flower about the accuracy of the reports suggesting he intends to step down as team director after the next Ashes, the English press has taken a similar tack. And, though he has had the chance to, Flower hasn't denied it yet, saying only "I don't look that far ahead" because "you never know what is around the corner".
The gnomic response was typical of a man who has become increasingly taciturn over the course of his tenure. But Flower is as exact with his words as a baker is with flour. He weighs them meticulously before he lets them pass his lips. So his ambiguity suggests, at the least, a hint of uncertainty at the top of English cricket. Which has been exacerbated by the news that the managing director, Hugh Morris, who has been at the ECB in one role or another since it was formed in 1997, is resigning to take up a job with Glamorgan.
Morris has been one of the most instrumental figures in English cricket in the past decade. Amongst other accomplishments, he was the man who oversaw the establishment of the National Performance Centre at Loughborough, and the appointments of several key figures in the ECB, including Flower himself. The men's and women's teams have both thrived under his directorship. And if there was, at times, a little tension between him and the ECB chairman, Giles Clarke, it is true too that Clarke would not have worked with him for so long if he hadn't felt he was doing an excellent job.
There's an idea, then, that Flower may be interested in moving up, rather than moving on, and taking over Morris's job. The timing would be right, because Morris is expecting to stay in his post for the Ashes this winter, before starting his new job in January, just before the Ashes ends. But Flower denies it. "This is my job. Would I fancy Hugh's job? I'm not even thinking about that." Instead, it seems that his reluctance to talk about his plans for the future may have more to do with his own uncertainty over how his role will evolve.
The ECB, which loves to wax on about "pathways" for players and employees, has already lined up a likely successor for Flower in Ashley Giles, who has taken charge of the limited-overs sides. Flower says that the idea of giving Giles the job was partly to make the best use of the ECB's coaching resources, and partly to improve his own "work-life balance", which had been knocked out of kilter because he was away for 250 days a year. Intriguingly, he was evasive when he was asked whether he felt the split had worked. The structure, he felt, was "still bedding in".
As for whether the new set-up had helped his work-life balance, he said only that "more importantly, the series has worked pretty well". He does seem an exhausted man, beleaguered by a media he doesn't much appreciate, and whom, to a certain extent, he has alienated with his off-hand manner.
It feels as though Flower is not quite sure what it will entail in the next 12 months or so. Giles, who is answerable to Flower, will oversee the performance squad which England will take to Australia this winter. After the Ashes though, and India's tour next summer, Flower says there will be "a priority shift towards the 2015 World Cup". He doesn't know how involved he will be in England's planning for the tournament, because "it is too far away". Certainly Giles will take on a far more prominent role, while Flower will have a back seat, particularly as England only have eight Tests scheduled in 2014. "I don't think I'll be underemployed," Flower says. "I think there is plenty to do." But if England win the World Cup, it will be Giles who takes the credit as coach.
Already then, it seems likely Flower will be playing a less hands-on role. But those who know him well say he wouldn't care to be as far from the thick of the action in the field as Morris was. A desk job probably wouldn't appeal. Besides, there is also the question of whether he even has the necessary qualifications to be an MD. Morris, for example, has an MBA from Henley Management College. The same question could be asked of Andrew Strauss, who is also rumoured to be in the running. Morris said that Strauss had spent around "15 to 20 days" working on "various projects" with the ECB this summer, sometimes shadowing Morris in his work.
Strauss said after he retired that he wanted to dabble in a few different things and see which he warmed too, which is why he has also been doing media work. If he has a taste for administration, he may apply for Morris's job, which will be openly advertised. If he got it, he would be Flower's boss, a sharp reversal, and one which may have come a little too soon after the relationship was working the other way around for either to be comfortable with it.
Asked again whether he planned to stay on in his current job through the next year, Flower said: "I am supposed to make a difference to English cricket in a positive way. I take that very seriously and I will continue to do that." Again, that leaves room for reading between the lines, in that there are a number of different ways in which he could continue to make that contribution. In the absence of detailed information, there will continue to be speculation. As Flower said himself: "No one's here forever. No matter however great a player he is, or however great an MD he is, or however well a coach is going. We all move on."
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"They lost a wicket in the first over and it was downhill from there."
Goatacre CC wicketkeeper Jared Murphy explains how his side went about bowling out local rivals Highworth for 11 – yes, 11 – in a Division Six match of the Wiltshire Cricket League. Highworth did at least make an effort to dig in, as the innings lasted 8.4 overs. "They got 11 runs, but one of those was a bye," Murphy explained, "and another was an edge." The edge went for four, which was Highworth's top score. It took Goatacre eight balls to make the 12 they needed. "It was pretty much the perfect match for us," Murphy said. "It was only lasted an hour, so we were all in the bar by 2pm."
STILL WANT MORE?
Finally, then, every word the Guardian has published about the Ashes this summer is available here, including Andy Wilson's player ratings, Mike Selvey's summation of the series, my own indignant reaction to the shabby treatment of the spectators at The Oval, Aaron Timms's Australian take on it all, Tom Jenkins's picture highlights reel, the final podcast and, last and probably least, our favourite moments and memories of the series.
That should keep you going for three months, I'd have thought. Now, back to the County Championship.
CONTACT THE SPIN …
… to share your thoughts or favourite memories of the 2013 Ashes by writing to andy.bull@theguardian.com.
IN!
To subscribe to the Spin, just visit this page, find 'The Spin' and follow the instructions.
No comments:
Post a Comment