Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has announced the appointment of former West Indies batsman Phil Simmons as the Head Coach of the Bangladesh National Men’s Cricket Team.

Phil Simmons will arrive Dhaka tomorrow (Wednesday) to join the team in preparation for the ICC World Test Championship series against South Africa this month.

Simmons(61), has reached an agreement to work with the BCB until the next year ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan.

He will replace national head coach Chandika Haturusingha.

BCB issues suspension notice to Chandika Hathurusinga

Announcing the BCB President Faruque Ahmed said: “I have had the opportunity to speak to Phil Simmons and have listened to his cricket philosophy and ideas. His extensive coaching experience, vision and proven track record of success make him an ideal choice for this role.”

Having represented the West Indies in 26 Tests and 143 ODIs between 1987 and 1999, Simmons began his international coaching career with Zimbabwe in 2004 before going on to coach Ireland from 2007 to 2015.

He was appointed West Indies Head Coach twice and was in charge when the team became ICC World T20 champions in 2016. Simmons also coached Afghanistan from 2018 to 2019.

Recently, Simmons has worked with teams in various franchisee leagues, including the Caribbean Premier League, Pakistan Super League, Major League Cricket in the USA, and the GT20 in Canada.