Ex-Kenyan international named national cricket team coach

Kenya’s batting coach Maurice Odumbe gives instructions to players during training at Simba Union, Nairobi, on February 1, 2017. Odumbe was on April 11 named the national team coach. PHOTO | CHRIS OMOLLO |

What you need to know:

  • Odumbe, a former Kenyan captain, was named coach on Wednesday.

Former international Maurice Odumbe has been appointed Kenya head coach by the Cricket Kenya Interim Management Committee.

Odumbe, a former Kenyan captain, was named coach on Wednesday, taking over from Thomas Odoyo, who resigned in February after the country was demoted to the ICC World Cricket League Division Three following a disastrous outing at the World Cricket League Division Two in Namibia.

ONYANGO NAMED ASSISTANT

Odumbe will be assisted by Lameck Onyango, who has been the Kenya Women’s Cricket team coach. Odumbe’s appointment was anounced at the first sitting of the interim committee that was formed on April 4 by Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa.

“It is a big honour. I will give it my best shot. I will instil the kind of work ethic I learnt from great coaches like the late Hanuman Singh who took Kenya to the 1990 ICC Trophy in the Netherlands and also coached the side during the same event held in Nairobi in 1994,” said Odumbe.

“I will teach the boys how to read the game. What to do and what not to do depending on the circumstance during a game.”

After a sterling cricket career, that included appearing in three successive ICC World Cups in 1996, 1999 and 2003, Odumbe, was banned from all cricket activities for five years by the Kenya Cricket Association after he was found guilty of associating with a known Indian bookmaker.

Odumbe is not new in the national team set up. He was appointed the team's batting coach in April 2017, a position he still held at the time of his new appointment.

Our source, who requested for anonymity, said that the other appointments were that of Edward Tito as Director of Cricket, Tariq Iqbal as convenor of selectors and Walter Trenk as the new development director.

The source also said that more announcements will be made when the committee meets again next week.