Justin Langer lashes out on the dirty politics happening in Australian Cricket

Many around the world still can’t believe or digest the fact the Australian board dismissed one of the most successful coaches in modern history in such a dramatic fashion. He joined the squad when many of the legends would have hesisted or even reject the proposal as the Sandpaper scandal changed how people used to look at team Australia. Two of their most successful players Steve Smith and David Warner were banned from the game for one year and if anyone deserves credit to bring back the glory days, it was Justin Langer. The legendary opener made some tough decisions but the team was having all the success they could have with that squad. Things changed when interim manager Richard Freudstein took charge of the office.

After winning the T20 World series, any coach would expect that the board would extend his contract and Justin was no different. However, the Australian board only offered him a six month extension. Not only that’s a bad offer but a humiliation to someone who brought the laurels back to Australian cricket. Thus, Langer resigned from the role of the head coach of the Australian team effective immediately.

Speaking at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA event in Perth, Former coach said, “The first thing he said to me was, ‘It must make you feel so good that all your mates are supporting you in the media,’”. He kept on as he added, “I said, ‘Yeah it is, acting chairman, but with all due respect, those mates are also the all-time greats of Australian cricket. They are the fabric of Australian cricket. They are Australian cricket. They also work all around the world in cricket. So yeah, I'm glad my mates are looking after me. Imagine if you had’”.

Speaking more about the subject Langer explained how he was so happy and was full of energy before he became a victim of all the dirty politics happening. “Ironically, the last six months of my coaching career were the most enjoyable period of 12 years of coaching. Not only did we win everything, but I had energy, and I had focus, and I was happy - besides the bull**** politics”, said Langer in the conference.

Post that incident, Langer is yet to coach any other team. Many top Journalists reported that Langer applied for the role of England head coach but the Aussie cleared that he never had any kind of conversation regarding a possible switch to England. “I've never spoken to English cricket," Langer said. "The thought of coaching England (shakes his head fervently)...mate”, he added.

Talking about the difficulties that he faced during his tenure, Langer said, “For three or four years I was concentrating on the politics, the media, the sponsorship; I was trying to do everything - I was trying to be everything to everyone. It's no wonder you get tired. It's no wonder your health suffers; your mental, your physical health. You're trying to please everybody. The great lesson I learned was…I cleared my desk, and all of a sudden instead of having everything on my table, I had two things on my desk. One was winning and the second thing was my people”.

Langer also expressed the fact that he was lonely towards the end of his coaching stint in the Australian team. The 51-year-old said, “If you know people have got your back, you can achieve miracles. If they haven't, it's a very lonely place. Leadership can be very, very lonely. But it's not lonely when you know people have got your back”.