McKenzie joins BD team as batting consultant

DHAKA: Bangladesh have appointed Neil McKenzie, the former South Africa batsman, as their batting consultant for the next year.

McKenzie, 42, played 58 Tests, 64 One-Day Internationals and two Twenty20 Internationals for South Africa between 2000 and 2009, aggregating 4948 runs across formats.

His 415-run partnership with Graeme Smith during South Africa’s February 2008 Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong remains the best for the first wicket in Test history.

He has been signed up till the end of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, and will join the team during their ongoing tour of the Caribbean on July 24.

Bangladesh, one of the eight teams to qualify directly for the next edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup, to be played in England and Wales from May 30 to July 15, 2019, have had a rough time with the bat in the West Indies. In the two Test matches — which they lost by an innings and 219 runs and by 166 runs — they recorded a sequence of 43, 144, 149 and 168.

McKenzie has in the past performed a similar role with the South Africa men’s team, and replaced Thilan Samaraweera who was batting coach for Bangladesh till he was roped in by Sri Lanka.