In a major announcement by the West Indies cricket board, former player Phil Simmons is once again appointed as the head coach of the West Indian men’s team. He will remain in charge of the cricket team for the next four years, during which he will be overseeing West Indian cricket in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship and also the seventh and eighth editions of ICC World Twenty20. He will also lead the Caribbean team in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 scheduled to be held in India. Simmons previously took charge of West Indies cricket immediately after their disastrous 2015 World Cup campaign in Australia.  

Phil Simmons back as West Indies head coach

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Simmons’ track record as coach

Simmons is not new to coaching. After making his last international appearance in an ODI against Australia in 1999, he took retirement from all forms of cricket in 2002. He later embarked on a successful coaching journey which started with a one-year stint with the Zimbabwean cricket team. He was appointed as head coach of the African coach in 2004 but was finally sacked under farcical conditions a year later.

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He then took over from Adrian Birrell to coach the Ireland cricket team after the 2007 Cricket World Cup. During his tenure, Ireland won 11 trophies and qualified for every major ICC event in the process. His coaching stint with the Irish team propelled them to multiple wins over Test-playing nations over the next two World Cups.

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Phil Simmons was then appointed by the WICB to coach his home nation. He led the West Indian cricket team to their historic second World T20 win when the Caribbean side defeated England in a nail-biting final in India. He was a key factor for the West Indian during their dominance in the game’s shortest format.

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