Cricket Australia have hung Justin Langer out to dry, says John Buchanan

By IANS

BRISBANE: Former Australia coach John Buchanan thinks Cricket Australia (CA) have hung head coach Justin Langer ‘out to dry’. Buchanan, who served as the head coach of Australia from 1999 to 2007, dubbed as the ‘golden age’, was also scathing of the saga surrounding Langer.

“They have really hung Justin out to dry. Whether they are going to reappoint him or not going to reappoint him, it’s just become a real saga (and) I really don’t understand why it has to be,” said Buchanan to 4BC Radio.

Buchanan commended Langer’s work as the head coach of Australia since taking up the role in May 2018. “When he came in, he was asked to do two things, and that was to fix the culture of the team. Make the Australian cricket team a likable team once again. And play hard, play fair and win some games. And if we look back on those four years’ he’s done both.”

Buchanan, 68, remarked that the players need to respect Langer’s position as head coach. “They’ve got to understand what it means to be an Australian player. They’ve got to understand the privilege they’ve been given. Justin is, I think, one of the best people to do that.”

Earlier, on Friday, the suspense around Langer’s future as the head coach continued as the CA board meeting yielded no conclusion after eight hours. After the meeting ended, CEO Nick Hockley read a statement to the press and didn’t take any questions from the media.

“Cricket Australia can confirm that the CA board met today and part of that meeting involved significant discussions about men’s head coach Justin Langer’s contract. We will now enter into confidential discussions with Justin and the outcome will be announced as soon as possible,” Hockley was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

Former Australia Test batter Marcus North tweeted after the statement, “Seriously…what is going on…the way this has played out is disappointing.”

Former teammates of Langer like Matthew Hayden, Shane Warne, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and Michael Clarke have come out in support of Langer’s contract being extended. But Test captain Pat Cummins and white-ball captain Aaron Finch had failed to publicly endorse Langer as the head coach.

Langer is coming to the end of his four-year stint in June 2022. He oversaw the development of Australia from the ruins of the Sandpaper gate in Cape Town to win the Men’s T20 World Cup in the UAE followed by winning Ashes 4-0 at home.