Trevor Gonsalves is now part of the coaching staff in the ongoing Indian Premier League season after four years of spotting emerging players for the Punjab Kings and is thoroughly enjoying the role. Gonsalves has a lot of coaching experience. He joined Assam last year after serving as the head coach of Vidarbha and led the team to the semi-finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy ODI tournament. In Punjab, he will have to replace veteran Jonty Rhodes, who was the team’s fielding coach till last season.
“I’ve always had to replace the older guys,” the 50-year-old Gonsalves said in reference to perhaps one of the most prolific coaches in the country. In Vidarbha too, I replaced the legendary Chandrakant Pandit (now coach of Kolkata Knight Riders). Gonsalves, a former first-class cricketer and a member of the India U-19 team under the captaincy of Rahul Dravid, discovered players like Jitesh Sharma who Made a mark in IPL. Apart from this, he also linked Vidarbha’s Darshan Nalkandey and Arthav Taide, who have now joined Gujarat Titans, with Pant’s victory.
Gonsalves said, “Before joining Assam, I selected many players from the Vidarbha team. I followed Jitesh and Taide’s progress through the age group levels. It’s good to see him progressing.” He believes his success with Assam last year paved the way for him to take up coaching in the IPL. Assam had defeated several big teams in domestic cricket, including Karnataka, in the 50-over tournament last year.
