The loyalties of international coaches

It is the track records, and not nationalities of coaches, that should be a deciding factor when analysing their work

With all the hullaballoo surrounding the overly-publicised Phantom menace showing no signs of dying down any time soon and gradually embroiling notable celebrities into its wrath, I felt more than compelled to view this incident through the prism of an ardent cricket fan.

Recently young Pakistani actor Mawra Hocane found herself in a pickle when she got involved in a war of words on social media after her loyalty to the nation was drawn into question - with her decision to do a Bollywood film being held against her. Having closely followed the issue I was unable to resist the urge to draw a parallel to Wasim Akram’s highly documented and well-known stints as a bowling consultant in the Indian Premier League. If public perception and media reports were to be believed then Akram may too have been guilty of committing an act of treason by helping out Indian bowlers. An action that countless Pakistanis may deem ‘unforgivable’; even more so than match-fixing charges.

Given my short attention span, this analogy brought, or rather dragged me onto a rather intriguing cricket topic, ‘the loyalties of international coaches’, which subsequently drove me onto another well-debated subject: Wasim Akram’s coaching career in India. At the start of his coaching career Wasim Akram was ridiculed for passing on the fast bowling tricks of the trades to aspiring Indian pacers with many in his homeland believing that the legendary left-armer, to put it in Jedi terms, had fallen to the dark side. Like in all matters concerning international athletes, mainly from India and Pakistan, the realm of irrational seemed to loom large in this scenario.

If issues regarding Pakistani coaches (or artistes) working in India are to be separated from the flag-waving nationalism and confused conceptions of patriotism, then what wrong have these professionals done by attempting to make a career for themselves away from home. It is the track records, and not nationalities of coaches, that should be a deciding factor when analysing their body of work. For instance, both Andrew Flintoff and Nathan Bracken have greatly benefited from picking on Akram’s brains in the past. Lest we forget that Wasim Akram, like Mawra Hocane, is not the property of the Pakistani public or government but the two are, in fact, free agents - and guns for hire - willing and able to do as they desire. Sadly, as is the case, Akram’s achievements, milestones and career will always be viewed with great cynicism in his own country than they will be abroad. This may be a major reason why Akram continues to remain a big draw in countries such as India, England and Australia.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2015.