When you cover Sri Lankan cricket, you come across many former international players turned coaches and you note their unique mannerisms and that they are vastly different from each other.
In recent times, Tom Moody perhaps was the most high profile individual to coach Sri Lanka, having won the World Cup twice and the Ashes multiple times. He was pretty much hands on. Trevor Bayliss was the complete contrast. He was more of an introvert, yet he produced stunning results – runner-up in 2011 World Cup and runner-up in 2009 World T-20. Graeme Ford loved Sri Lanka like no other foreign coach. Despite getting a raw deal from his employers, he has vowed to come back to Colombo and spend his retirement days here. He was very much a father figure to the players. The incumbent Mickey Arthur looks a task master and his demanding nature has brought the best out of some current players. The most successful of them all – Davenell Fredrick Whatmore was easy going and fun loving but when he had to, he spoke his mind and put his foot down.
Cricket tours that ended abruptly
Dav turned 66 on Monday. Birthday wishes poured in on social media. Former fast bowler Nuwan Zoysa left the best message. It read, ‘The best coach ever.’
Dav has done the full circle. That includes four international teams – Bangladesh, Pakistan and Zimbabwe apart from Sri Lanka. County Cricket with Lancashire, Sheffield Shield with Victoria, IPL with Kolkata Knight Riders and what not. More recently, he has spent lot of time in India having served at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore and with Kerala in Ranji Trophy. It would be hard to find a more accomplished, decorated and experienced coach than Dav.
Although he is 66, for someone who loves the game passionately, it will be hard for Dav to not to engage in coaching.
Dav’s first stint in Sri Lanka started in 1995. Then Board Chairman Ana Punchihewa wrote to the cricket boards asking them to recommend two individuals each to take over the Sri Lankan job. There were many recommendations, from Ian Botham to Bob Woolmer. The Australian Cricket Board strongly recommended Whatmore. Whatmore at that point was coaching Australian state side Victoria. Punchihewa noted that among all the CVs, Whatmore had the best credentials to take up the job. Also with Whatmore he was going to get the best of both worlds – scientific coaching approach and then his heart was with Sri Lanka having been born in Colombo before migrating to Australia as a kid.
The no-balling of Muralitharan and Australia’s boycott of their World Cup fixture in Colombo burned bridges between the nations but not many are aware of the helping hand the Australian board gave their Sri Lankan counterparts in mid 1990s. Whatmore was going to cost US$ 100,000 a year for SLC. And they had a bank balance of Rs. 300,000. Sri Lanka were scheduled to tour Australia later that year and were set to get US$ 100,000 as guarantee fee. ACB generously doubled the amount and advanced the cash so that Sri Lanka could afford Whatmore.
In order to raise the team’s fitness standards, Whatmore recommended hiring the services of a qualified physiotherapist – Alex Kontouri. That was going to cost SLC a further 80,000 US$. Punchihewa this time reached out to Dr. Quintus De Zylva, who lives in Melbourne and he made efforts to collect the money from Sri Lankan expatriates living in Australia to meet the demands. In the mid 90s, Sri Lanka used to challenge the world’s finest sides but often fell short. But with their fitness levels improving leaps and bounds, they started winning close games as well. Winning the World Cup in 1996 was the crowning moment in the nation’s sporting history.
Soon after the World Cup win, Whatmore encountered a few issues and with Punchihewa losing a closely contested cricket election, he wasn’t getting much support.
Soon Whatmore quit the job and joined English county Lancashire.
When defending champions Sri Lanka had a poor World Cup in 1999, there was knee jerk reaction and the government brought in the first ever Interim Committee with reputed banker Rienzie Wijetilleke as Chairman. Sidath Wettimuny was Chairman of Selectors. The Interim Committee felt the need to bring back Dav and S. Skandakumar, the Secretary and one of the most respected figures in the business circles was entrusted with the job. Skandakumar was travelling to England for the ICC’s Annual General Meeting and he touched base with Dav and the pair agreed to meet up for lunch in Manchester. Coincidentally, the meeting took place on the day the World Cup final at Lord’s. Skanda skipped the big final and took the train to Manchester to meet up with Dav, who agreed to return to Colombo but had a major issue as he was contracted with Old Trafford. Skanda promised to take up the matter with Chairman of Lancashire and pointed out that this was a national cause and requested him to consider releasing Dav. He was duly released without any penalty clauses imposed. Dav arrived in July and soon turned the fortunes of a struggling team.
His first assignment was against Australia, who had just been crowned World Champions. Sri Lanka won the tri-nation series beating the Aussies in the final at RPS. The tournament also involved India. The team then went onto win their first ever Test match against Australia at Asgiriya.
This time around, Dav went onto complete his tenure coaching the team for four brilliant years.
