Allister De Winter has been selected to fill the vacant role of bowling coach for Australia’s upcoming tour of England and Ireland. De Winter’s promotion follows the shock exit of Craig McDermott, who resigned from the role recently, after successfully turning around the fortunes of Australia’s bowling attack in his short stint as bowling coach. In announcing his resignation, McDermott cited the crammed international calendar, which he claimed was forcing him away from family and other business. The amount of cricket being played, and the subsequent demands on the coaching staff, is undoubtedly having an impact on the coaching staff. Furthermore, filling the role on a permanent basis could pose some challenges, with Andy Bichel and Damian Fleming among those who have already ruled themselves out.
Despite this, De Winter comes into the role as a well credentialed coach. Credited with rebuilding the action of the born again Ben Hilfenhaus, De Winter is highly regarded in Australian cricketing circles. De Winter played first class cricket for Tasmania from 1986 to 1993, claiming 35 wickets in 21 Sheffield Shield matches. Since his retirement, De Winter has progressed well as a coach, leading the Hobart Hurricanes to a strong showing in the inaugural Big Bash league, while being an intergral member of the Tasmanian state side for some time.
The depth and quality of young Australian bowlers ensures that whoever claims the role permanently will have some talent to work with. The key challenge could be ensuring that the young quicks stay on the park, given frequency of injuries to yoiung fast bowlers in recent times.
Australian Cricket News 