Bangladesh’s new fielding coach Richard Halsall has set his sights on improving the short-catching skills of his charges after signing a two-year contract with the Bangladesh Cricket Board yesterday. The Zimbabwean has expressed his eagerness to develop the fielding aspect of the Tigers, starting with the upcoming home series against Zimbabwe later this month.
“Obviously the focus in the Test series will be a lot of close catching. The focus shifts slightly as you go from Test to ODI cricket. In the Test matches, close catching becomes critical especially with the outstanding slow bowlers that we have,” Halsall told the media at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.
The former Zimbabwean first-class cricketer had initially joined the Bangladesh team on a short-term contract in the recently concluded tour of the West Indies as his existing deal with the England and Wales Cricket Board was still to expire. However, following the expiration of his contract with his previous employers, Halsall has now joined the Tigers permanently.
Before joining Bangladesh, Halsall was the assistant coach with the English national side for four years. Prior to that he was the fielding consultant of England for two years from 2008-2010. Throughout the course of his distinguished coaching career, the 46-year old was also the fielding coach of Sussex County Cricket Club from 1998-2006.
Halsall, who has worked with a number of high-profile personalities in his coaching career, said he is looking forward to utilising his experience alongside the current coaching set-up of Bangladesh.
“It’s very exciting. I have been very lucky with whom I worked with. People like Mushtaq Ahmed, Ottis Gibson, Saqlain Mushtaq, Graham Gooch. And here’s Hatu (head coach Chandika Hathurusingha) and Ruwan (Kalpage) and Heath Streak - they are outstanding coaches. For me it’s very exciting. I have spent a lot of time talking to the senior players and learning something from them. You have got to develop relationships and we are on the way to that,” he said.
Halsall also spoke about the body language of the cricketers and informed that it is important to forget the mistakes of the past and look for new opportunities. He also stressed on the significance of building a helpful atmosphere in the field.
The new fielding coach of Bangladesh went on to praise the catching ability of Shakib al Hasan and Nasir Hossain. Halsall is of the opinion that Nasir is one of the best catchers in the world and believes that the better fielders in the side can help and motivate the others to improve.
Following Halsall’s appointment, the refurbishment of the Tigers’ new coaching set-up is now complete. His fellow countryman Streak was added to the roster as the fast bowling coach while Hathurusingha has been the Tigers’ head coach since the home ODI series against India in June this year. Kalpage, meanwhile, is the spin and assistant coach.