West Indies appoint Monty Desai as new batting coach

St John's (Antigua), Dec 4: West Indies on Wednesday appointed Monty Desai as the batting coach of the men's team on a two-year contract. Desai will join the Windies team ahead of the first of the three T20Is against India, scheduled for Friday in Hyderabad.

Desai served as Canada's head coach at the ICC World Cricket League Division 2 and Afghanistan as their batting coach at the ICC Cricket World Cup qualification tournament in 2018. More recently, he also worked as batting coach for the United Arab Emirates at the ICC T20 World Cup qualification event.

"I am very much looking forward to being part of a journey where I can help to create a winning work environment, learn and embrace a new culture, and build a 'happy dressing room' tradition alongside other excellent leaders," Desai said in an official statement.

"I am eager to join forces with Head Coach, Phil Simmons and Director of Cricket, Jimmy Adams, and our captains, such that I may contribute in every possible way to the success of our team," he added.

Simmons said that he's looking forward to Desai helping players improve on their talent and perform better.

"I have worked with Monty before and he is an excellent coach. He has proven he has the ability to get players to improve on their talent and also to perform better in matches," Simmons said.

"He has vast knowledge of the game and it is good he is starting here with us in India. I look forward to seeing him work with our batsmen in all formats as we look to get better in all areas."

Windies team management also includes bowling coach Roddy Estwick and fielding coach Rayon Griffith.