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Syed Mushtaq Ali T20: Manpreet Gony dons bowling coach hat for Punjab team
A meeting of the PCA senior selection committee was held on December 16 during which appointments of coaching and supporting staff for senior men’s upcoming season were made
Manpreet Gony will always be remembered for his stupendous bowling show in the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008 playing for Chennai Super Kings which eventually led to his India debut.
The lanky speedster who bid goodbye to international cricket in 2019 is now ready to don the hat of a bowling coach with his state Punjab senior team. While the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) has announced Munish Bali as the head coach, Gony has been named as the bowling coach for the season. Gony, who recently got back from Sri Lanka after playing for Colombo Kings franchisee in the Lanka Premier League (LPL), is fine-tuning the fast bowlers at the ongoing state camp at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium.
A meeting of the PCA senior selection committee was held on December 16 during which appointments of coaching and supporting staff for senior men’s upcoming season were made. “It’s a new role for me. I worked with young Punjab fast bowlers three months ago during a camp. I’m looking forward to using my experience with the boys and helping my state during matches. We have some exciting talent in the team. It would be interesting to see them shine,” said 36-year-old Gony, who has played 61 first-class matches and bagged 196 wickets. He has played for T20 Global Canada League and Qatar T10 League.
The senior selection committee includes chairman Arun Sharma, Chandan Madan, Love Abhilish, Sameer Mehra and Balbir Singh. The meeting was also attended by Puneet Bali, PCA secretary, and Surjit Rai, PCA joint secretary. It was also decided that Gaurav Sharma will be appointed as the physiotherapist, Sachin Kalra as the physical trainer (on call for camps), Avinash as ball thrower and Girish Bhanot as manager-cum-coordinator, Jitender Billa as fitness trainer, Rahul as masseur and Amit Kumar as video analyst.
As many as 32 probables are attending a preparatory camp at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali. Punjab will travel to Bengaluru for their Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy matches. The team leaves on January 1.
Speaking on the appointments, Puneet Bali said, “PCA has faith in the appointed coaching and supporting staff. Practice matches are being conducted during the ongoing preparatory camp. We are waiting for BCCI approval for Yuvraj Singh and Barinder Sran to represent Punjab again. All eyes will be on the tournament in Ludhiana next week.”
