Justin Langer steps down as coach after turning down the offer of a short-term contract extension. Langer’s manager confirmed on Saturday their client had tendered his resignation, effective immediately.
Langer had spoken with Cricket Australia (CA) officials on Friday night after his future was discussed at length at a seven-hour board meeting earlier in the day. Cricket Australia later disclosed that Langer had been offered a short-term contract extension, which he declined. CA declared Andrew McDonald, former assistant coach as interim head coach.
The Ashes retention after 18 years
Just a year after the infamous incident, disgrace, and defeat, Australia started the era of its domination under Langer. With this victory, they were 2-1 up in the series and retained the Ashes for the first time in 18 years.
Triumph in the T20 World Cup
After the horrible T20 series lose against West Indies and Bangladesh, both by 4-1, nobody expected that the Aussies will lift up the T20 World Cup. Langer’s side came into the tournament as the least favorites, but their performance lit up the world. However, nobody can deny the reality that it was a complete team effort that saw Australia lift their first T20 World Cup in the game’s history.
It’s hard to hold Ashes than win one
It could have been a whitewash, 5-0, but Australia won it 4-0. Even if a supporter does not like Australia at all, they cannot deny their dominance in this Ashes. The English side fell so drastically that changes in the team were continuous in almost every test.
Moreover, with a 55.5%-win record in Tests, Langer is second best only to John Buchanan among all Australian coaches. Nick Hockley, the CEO of Cricket Australia, realized how influential Langer was for the team. In his statement, he said,
“I would like to sincerely thank Justin and also his family for all that they have given to Australian cricket over the past four years, for which we remain eternally grateful.”
There are already rumors that England Cricket Board (ECB) is trying to get Langer under their hood, only time will tell what future he chose.
