England appoints Warwickshire captain Jeetan Patel as spin consultant

Warwickshire skipper Jeetan Patel and the former New Zealand international has been appointed as England’s spin bowling consultant for their upcoming T20I series against New Zealand. Jeetan also plays for Wellington and he has been given a break in the first three rounds of Plunket Shield for the coaching gig. Jeetan is the most recent addition to head coach Silverwood’s team for the five-match T20I series starting on November 1, 2019. It is scheduled to be played in Christchurch.

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Talking to a leading publication, he claimed it to be a tricky situation as he is already a contracted player for Wellington .He said that the opportunity came up and he spoke to Cricket Wellington. He added that the Cricket Wellington were very positive and supportive about this opportunity. Jeetan termed this opportunity as a development beyond playing and it would give other guys a chance to perform in his position in the team.

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Jeetan finished the recent County Cricket season, scalping 64 wickets at an average of 26.75. He is all set to work with leg spinners- Adil Rashid and uncapped Matt Parkinson who will play the series against New Zealand.

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Patel still unsure about impact

Jeetan added that he was unsure about the impact he'll have in the position but he still wants to give it a good go. He said that some of his attributes would help some guys and he termed working with England to be a huge opportunity. He said that he is grateful that the job came his way and now it’s about him and how he fulfills it.

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Jeetan will be replacing Saqlain Mushtaq who was England’s spin bowling coach. It appears as though Saqlain's contract has not been renewed. Jeetan will be joining Paul Collingwood- the permanent assistant coach of the English side.