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| April 2, 2003 | Wednesday | Muharram 29, 1424 |
New coach annoyed at his appointment
SYDNEY, April 1: Australian Cricket Academy coach Bennett King said on Tuesday he was surprised and annoyed to hear that he had been appointed the new West Indies cricket coach.
King said he applied for the position last December “just to see what would happen”, and had an interview in early March.
That was the last thing he heard until a phone call early on Tuesday from the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) informing him that he had been appointed and that the media had been informed.
Adelaide-based King said he was still considering whether to take up the position and had received no formal approach.
“They’ve nominated me as the preferred candidate and I haven’t agreed to anything,” King told Australian Associated Press on Tuesday.
“I’ve seen no terms or conditions, I still haven’t.
“I was actually informed at eight o’clock this morning of my appointment without really too much prior knowledge that that was the way they were going to go.
“And then they announced it to the press, which I was pretty annoyed at.
“At the moment that’s where it stands and I haven’t seen anything, so I can’t make any decisions really.”
Asked if he would become the next West Indies coach, replacing Roger Harper, King replied: “I’ll tell you when they get some terms on the table.”
The Australian team left for the West Indies late on Monday, with the WICB announcing that Gus Logie would coach the team against Australia and Sri Lanka in the interim.
King thought he was expected in the Caribbean in July.
“I believe the first week in July they’re looking at me being there, but in terms of making a decision, I can’t do anything until they give me something.”
When asked if the premature announcement of his appointment would effect his decision, King said: “We’ll wait and see. I need a bit more time to think about it all.”
He added the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) had supported him throughout.
“I need to speak with the ACB about all this, they’ve been very supportive through this whole process,” he said.
“Whether it’s the right time for me, that’s something I’ve got to discuss with my family and also the ACB.
“I’ll certainly be making sure the decision is the correct one.”—AFP
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