Jonty Rhodes, considered as one of the greatest fielders in the history of the game, has gotten a new assignment. Currently appointed as the fielding coach of the Kings XI Punjab side, Rhodes is all set to take up a new job as the coach of the Sweden cricket team. Yes, Sweden also has a cricket team. Rhodes will relocate to Sweden after the end of IPL 2020. Taking to their Twitter account, Sweden cricket announced, " BREAKING NEWS! Swedish Cricket Federation to invest in junior cricket, high performance & growth through the appointment of South African cricket great, Jonty Rhodes as head coach.”
This is not the first time that Rhodes has taken up a coaching stint with a country. His stint as the fielding coach for South African national side was magnificent. In addition, Rhodes has had various endeavours in franchise-based cricket with teams like Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab. Rhodes also has been an assistant coach for the Kenyan cricket team.
Sweden as a cricket team
In the statement by Sweden cricket, Benn Harradine, sports director for the Swedish Cricket Association said Rhodes will have an important main role in lifting our players as well as assisting in the framework for Swedish Cricket's quality training, all to ensure and contribute to a sustainable future for the sport. The South African star also commented, “I am really happy about the opportunity to move to Sweden with my family and I look forward to working with Swedish Cricket. This opportunity came at a perfect time and I am grateful to have the opportunity to contribute my energy in a whole new environment,” Rhodes said.
Rhodes move comes at a time when Cricket South Africa has been suspended by SASCOC, throwing the future of international cricketers in doubt. The former South Africa player has expressed concerns about the lack of accountability and racial issues in the board for the last couple of years.
