Jonty Rhodes parts ways with Mumbai Indians ahead of IPL 2018

What’s the story?

After nine years of association as their fielding coach, Jonty Rhodes has snapped ties with the Mumbai Indians, with the South African moving on to focus on his personal life.

"It has been a remarkable journey with Mumbai Indians, one that I will cherish all my life. Over the last nine years, Mumbai Indians has set sporting benchmarks both on and off the field, and personally, it's been quite a remarkable journey for me to work with fantastic set of individuals like Sachin [Tendulkar], Rohit [Sharma], Anil [Kumble], Ricky [Ponting], Mahela [Jayawardene] and all the support staff and players over the years", Jonty said.

In case you didn’t know…

Rhodes joined hands with the Mumbai Indians before the IPL 2009, and has been one of the constants in its support staff ever since. Under his coaching, the franchise won three IPL trophies, the latest being this year, as well as two Champions League titles.

He retired from international cricket after the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, and ventured into coaching after working with Standard Chartered Bank as an Account Executive.

The heart of the matter

The 48-year-old South African will be replaced by James Pamment, the Northern Districts head coach, who previously played for Auckland at the first-class and List A levels. Pamment, while speaking on his new appointment, said that he was 'honoured to join the ranks of the Mumbai Indians' and said that it'll be a great challenge to fulfil the role of Rhodes.

In a press statement, Akash Ambani, owner of the Mumbai Indians, heaped praise on Rhodes, and said that his contribution to the franchise cannot be valued in words. Wishing him the best for his future, Ambani added that the team respects his decision to move on.

What's next?

The Mumbai Indians will return as defending champions in the eleventh edition of the IPL that will be held in April-May next year.

Author's take

Throughout the ebbs and flows of the franchise, Jonty Rhodes's contribution to the Mumbai team has been immense. A cheerful character on the sidelines, and a strict taskmaster when he had to be, Rhodes inspired a generation of cricketers with his lofty fielding standards during his playing days, and commitment to the game that continued even after retirement.

A feature of the Mumbai side's triple success has been their high fielding standards: youngsters like the Pandya brothers, as well as their current skipper Rohit Sharma, have carried the torch previously held by Andrew Symonds, Ricky Ponting, Herschelle Gibbs and Kieron Pollard.