‘We don’t have an MS Dhoni’: Ex-England captain’s blunt warning to Fleming

MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming (PTI Photo)

Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes newly-appointed Test coach Stephen Fleming should have taken charge immediately instead of delaying his arrival until England’s tour of South Africa later this year.Fleming was named England’s new Test coach after Brendon McCullum was removed from the role earlier this month, though the New Zealander has retained his position as the team’s white-ball coach. However, Fleming will not oversee England during the upcoming three-Test home series against Pakistan, which begins on August 19 at Headingley.Questioning the decision, Vaughan said England would miss an opportunity to help Fleming settle into the role before bigger assignments such as the Ashes.“Stephen Fleming is a good appointment as England’s Test coach, but he should be in position for the start of the Pakistan series, rather than taking over fully for the South Africa tour in December,” Vaughan wrote in the Telegraph.“It is about the small details, gaining experience of going to grounds such as Edgbaston – which hosts an Ashes Test – getting to know people involved in English cricket and fact-finding about our game by meeting the county coaches who can help him. These are the one-per-cent details England let slip during the Brendon McCullum years but are required to win major trophies.”Vaughan also suggested that England agreeing to Fleming’s preferred timeline reflected a shift in the appeal of the coaching role.“It also suggests the England job has lost a little of its allure because he does not feel he must start immediately. It also shows a little bit of desperation that England were willing to appoint a candidate on his terms, rather than their own,” he added.Fleming arrives in England after an extraordinary stint with Chennai Super Kings in the IPL. During his 17-year association with the franchise, he guided the team to five IPL titles and two Champions League trophies alongside captain MS Dhoni

before stepping down earlier this month.Vaughan, however, warned that the former New Zealand skipper would be walking into a very different environment, pointing out that England captain Joe Root does not offer the same dynamic that Dhoni did at Chennai.“Fleming is very well respected, renowned for being a very good manager and tactician. I’ve seen him at the IPL, and one of the problems he might discover in English cricket is that we do not have an MS Dhoni to be his captain.“Dhoni ran the ship at Chennai Super Kings, and Fleming had some really good backroom coaches as well. Eric Simons was a wonderful bowling coach for him, a master at getting the white ball to swing. His team was built around skill with the ball, not express pace. I wonder whether that is an indication that the skill side of bowling will come back into the England Test team rather than just out-and-out speed,” Vaughan wrote.