Mark Boucher to coach the Port Elizabeth franchise

The former South African wicketkeeper, Mark Boucher, has been selected as the coach of the Port Elizabeth franchise for the inaugural T20 Global league. The lucrative competition has already attracted many big names and is set to get underway in November this year. The league is a step taken by Cricket South Africa (CSA) to prevent talented cricketers from going the ‘Kolpak’ way.

Port Elizabeth is owned by the Dubai-based businessman, Ajay Sethi, and the team has been named as Nelson Mandela Bay Stars. Boucher’s coaching staff will include the current coach of Zimbabwe Heath Streak as the bowling coach and Malibongwe Maketa as the assistant coach. Goolam Rajah will be the team director who has the immense experience of spending 20 years with the South African national team.

Clive Lloyd, Makhaya Ntini and Rohan Gavaskar also part of the team

The franchise is not leaving a stone unturned by roping in some of the best players to have played the game in the past. Makhaya Ntini, the former Proteas fast bowler, will be the ambassador of the team alongwith the West Indies legend Clive Lloyd. Both the stalwarts will work in tandem and it should surely inspire the cricketers to do well.

Rohan Gavaskar, a former Indian cricketer and the son of the legend Sunil Gavaskar, will work as the team’s media director and spokesperson. Team owner Ajay Sethi expressed his pleasure over the legends joining the team and said that the team would be the people’s team always.

“We wanted a team that would be founded with the same values that guided Madiba. My thanks to the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality for embracing us with such generosity. For us, this team is about being a big part of the Nelson Mandela Bay community and the Eastern Cape for years to come. We want the Nelson Mandela Bay Stars to be the People’s Team,” said Sethi.