NEW PAARL ROYALS COACH BOND WANTS TO LIFT THE BETWAY SA20 TROPHY

The Paarl Royals have appointed former New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond as the new head coach of the Royals Sports Group-owned franchise for Betway SA20 Season 2. 

Bond has replaced former Proteas all-rounder JP Duminy after the latter was called up for national duty as the white-ball batting coach.

Duminy has provided Bond with a great platform after guiding the Royals to a semi-final placing in Season 1. 

Bond, 48, has extensive coaching experience after his stellar playing career with Black Caps where he helped the Mumbai Indians to four Indian Premier League titles in nine seasons. 

He has since also been roped in by Paarl Royals' sister franchise, Rajasthan Royals, in the dual role of Assistant Coach and Fast Bowling Coach for the IPL.

"Apart from being a fierce competitor during his playing days, Shane (Bond) has also excelled in his various coaching roles across teams and leagues, and we are delighted to have him lead the coaching team at Paarl Royals," said Royals' Director of Cricket Kumar Sangakkara.

"The inaugural season provided us with a lot of learnings after our semi-final finish, and we believe that his experience, commitment and vision align well with our goals for the upcoming season."

Bond was equally excited about the new challenge that awaits him at Boland Park. 

"It is a new challenge for me personally to be heading to the SA20, but what gives me the belief is the strong squad we have been able to assemble for the upcoming season," he said. 

"We have so much experience and immense potential in our ranks, which makes me excited to join the group in January and work towards achieving our target of lifting the trophy."

The Royals’ squad were heavily dependent on England white-ball captain Jos Buttler for runs at the top of the order in Season 1 and Bond will be hoping for more consistent contributions from captain David Miller and youngster Mitchell van Buuren.

Equally, the Royals’ attack was tailor made for the slow home surface at Boland Park where spin twins Bjorn Fortuin and Tabraiz Shamsi were virtually unplayable.

But with the arrival of West Indies left-arm seamer Obed McCoy and South African-born Hampshire seamer John Turner, Bond will be eager for a much more rounded attack especially when the Royals travel up to the Highveld where they will encounter much faster pitches.

Bond’s first assignment with the Royals is no easy task with the winelands team hosting last season’s runners-up Pretoria Capitals at Boland Park on Friday, January 12. The Royals will be hoping to exact revenge for their Season 1 semi-final defeat to the Capitals at The Wanderers.