Jonty Rhodes will no longer serve as the fielding coach of Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), the franchise has announced via a communique.
The former South African cricketer, who carved out a niche for himself for his exemplary fielding standards, will be replaced by James Pamment from New Zealand.
“We are happy to introduce James Pamment to the MI Paltan (MI Fan Army). James is an experienced coach at the international level having worked with New Zealand Cricket as fielding specialist and development. What impressed us was the way James had coached Northern Districts in Champions League T20 in 2014, and to be honest, his sides’ fielding unit was one of the best Mumbai Indians had ever faced,” Mumbai Indians said in a press release.
Well, Jonty Rhodes was associated with MI since IPL 2009 and he took the decision to part, choosing instead to spend more time on his personal business ventures.
MI team owner Akash Ambani has paid tribute to Rhodes for his services. “Jonty has been a pillar of strength and energy in Mumbai Indians. His contribution cannot be valued in words. We respect his decision and wish him the best for the future. Jonty will always be a part of Mumbai Indians family for life,” Ambani said.
On his parting, Jonty said, “It has been a remarkable journey with Mumbai Indians, one that I will cherish all my life,” he said, adding, “Personally, it’s been quite a remarkable journey for me to work with fantastic set of individuals like Sachin, Rohit, Anil, Ricky, Mahela and all the support staff and players over the years.”
Who is James Pamment?
James Pamment is an England-born cricketer who played cricket in New Zealand. Though he never represented any country, playing only first-class cricket for Auckland. He played 14 FC games at domestic level and scored only 351 runs at a mediocre average of 15.95.
His List A career is much better as he has amassed 933 runs in 30 matches with a solitary century to go with six half-centuries. Pamment though has earned his name in the coaching stint and has experience of working with Northern Districts, the domestic team of the Kiwis.
