Gujarat Giants, who have roped in the legendary Indian cricketer Mithali Raj as their mentor and advisor, have locked in their choices for the coaching staff, ahead of the inaugural season of the Women’s Premier League.
Along with Raj, the Giants have roped in some of the most prominent names from the world of cricket. While former Australian cricketer Rachael Haynes will be the team’s head coach, the team’s bowling coach is the former Indian spinner, Nooshin Al Khadeer, with all-rounder Tushar Arothe as their batting coach and Gavan Twining will be the team’s fielding coach.
Former captain of the Indian women’s national cricket team and mentor for Gujarat Giants, Raj says, “The likes of Rachael Haynes, Nooshin Al Khadeer, Tushar Arothe, and Gavan Twining will certainly take the performance of the team notches up.”
“Not only have they carved a niche for themselves in their roles, but their stories of resilience will be an inspiration for the team. Their combined strengths will enable the Gujarat Giants to give their best performance on the ground at the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League, which will inspire several aspiring women athletes,” Raj added.
Haynes, who has played at the highest level for more than a decade, has won six world championships with the Australian team and was the vice-captain of the side from 2017-2022.
The left-handed batter, who was an integral part of the very successful national set-up, is a veteran of 84 T20Is and played crucial roles in the Australian team’s championship-winning campaigns at the 2018 and 2020 T20 World Cups.
Haynes, who was part of the team that won the 2022 Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, has also turned out for the Sydney Thunder in the Women’s Big Bash League, often leading the run-scoring charts on her side.
“The Women’s Premier League is such an exciting addition to the cricket landscape. The opportunity to be involved in the inaugural season with the Gujarat Giants and work with the brilliant Mithali Raj is something I’m really looking forward to,” Haynes said.
“We have formed a wonderful coaching team, with Nooshin Al Khadeer, Tushar Arothe and Gavan Twining, who will be bringing on board their rich experience, which will help the team to play an exciting brand of cricket that our fans will enjoy watching,” she said.
Al Khadeer, who made her debut for India when Mithali was already an integral part of the Indian women’s cricket team, is currently the coach of the India U-19 Women’s team, which recently emerged victorious at the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in South Africa.
The former India off-break bowler, who bagged 100 wickets in ODIs, was the head coach of the Supernovas team last year when they won the 2022 Women’s T20 Challenge.
Meanwhile, Tushar Arothe is well-known in Indian cricket circles and has been the coach of the Indian women’s team. With Arothe at the helm, the Indian women’s team reached the final of the ICC Women’s World Cup in 2017.
Arothe, who has significant coaching experience in the domestic cricket genre, also led the women’s team to the final of the 2018 Women’s Twenty20 Asia Cup held in Malaysia.
Satyam Trivedi, Head, Adani Sportsline, which owns Gujarat Giants, said, “The Women’s Premier League will be a game-changer and we are thrilled to have a phenomenal team of coaches for Gujarat Giants.”
“Trailblazers such as Mithali Raj, Rachael Haynes and Nooshin’s remarkable journeys as athletes will surely set the bar high for every team member. We wish the team nothing but tremendous success,” Trivedi added.