Former Central Stags Head Coach HEINRICH MALAN couldn’t have asked for a much more fiery baptism in his first two months as an International coach, after joining Ireland.

First up was India, the visiting superpower taking a 2-0 T20i Series win. Now it’s the BLACKCAPS in red-hot-white-ball mode. It will be South Africa for dessert.

Malan is loving his new role as Ireland’s lead mentor and all the great challenges it brings, but wasn't so enamoured with the dose of COVID-19 that threw a curve ball into the lead-up to the latest BLACKCAPS tour he’s been so looking forward to.

CRICKET IRELAND

When the BLACKCAPS played their opening ODI on Sunday at Malahide, Coach Malan was just out of isolation after having been a close contact of a case in the lead-up week, and obviously having had to limit his engagement with players and fellow staff during that time as a precaution.

The tour is a personally relevant one for Malan, with three of his former Central Stags charges — WILL YOUNG, BLAIR TICKNER and DANE CLEAVER, as well as several Auckland Aces players that he went on to coach over the last three summers in New Zealand, in the BLACKCAPS squad.

Ace Glenn Phillips made his long-awaited ODI debut in Sunday’s dramatic first game, while Stags keeper-batsman Cleaver is in line to make his all-formats debut for New Zealand if he gets a start against the Irish on this tour.

Dane Cleaver and Blair Tickner | PHOTOSPORT

Even if you’re perched on a seat in the opposing team’s viewing area, watching any player make their debut is special — and Malan won’t be immune to enjoying that moment should it arrive for Cleaver in his presence.

“It’s a special feat for any player, isn’t it?” he says.

“That’s the reason why we all play the wonderful game: to be tested at the highest level against the best players, and this is obviously the highest level. It’s something that will be really well deserved if Dane gets that opportunity.

“He’s a hardened performer now and he’s shown that for a very long period of time, whether it’s red ball or white ball. He’s a matchwinner. He can win games from nowhere so I wish him well when he gets that opportunity.”

But after Michael Bracewell managed to win the opening ODI from nowhere on Sunday — well, from number seven in the order, to be precise, with a maiden ODI century, 127 not out off 82 balls, that saw the BLACKCAPS to a record winning chase of 305/9 for a one-wicket victory in 49.5 overs, chances are Malan would just like to see that happen to a different opponent.

“I think I’ve said this to all the players I’ve coached in the past: that I really do hope they go well — just not against the teams that I coach! So I hope Dane flies really high, but hopefully it won’t influence many of the games over the next two weeks against Ireland!”

2019 and good times with the Stags | PHOTOSPORT

So begin the first steps along the diplomatic tightrope that will stretch end-to-end across this interview.

It’s not just cricket that requires some Kissinger treatment. For some reason, Test rugby has been a bit of a talking point in Ireland this week too.

There’s always the odd comment flying around from his Ireland squad, “but I’m not sure whether they think I’m Kiwi, Irish or South African now!

“When my family and I were watching the Ireland-All Blacks Tests, the kids were first of all singing Ireland’s anthem, and then they were doing the haka. As long as there’s a bit of footy on the TV and the kids get around and watch it, that’s really what’s important for us. At the end of the day it’s just nice to be experiencing different cultures, and hopefully these kinds of experiences will put our three kids in good stead as having an appreciation of the world — before we settle down, eventually.”

Born in Pretoria, Malan was a first-class and Domestic one-day player in South Africa before he turned to coaching at a young age. He’s now a badged New Zealand citizen, and took both the Central Stags and Auckland Aces to Plunket Shield and white-ball championship titles whilst he was here.

A superb technical coach, Malan had mentored the Stags for six years and had a major impact on Blair Tickner evolving from a tall young bowler with a round-arm action to the aggressive strike bowler of today who uses his height so effectively.

Blair Tickner, from Stag to BLACKCAP | PHOTOSPORT

That beautifully choreographed action took a couple of years to become embedded in Tickner’s muscle memory, but ultimately led to a BLACKCAPS call-up — and here Tickner is now in the visitors’ changing room at Malahide, after having taken four on ODI debut at Bay Oval earlier this year and contributing a two-fer on Sunday in the gripping battle with Ireland.

“I was quite raw at the time,” Tickner recalls of his own evolution. “Heinrich looked at me, broke me down, changed my action a lot over the next year or two, and I got better for it. He helped me out with technical stuff at the start.”

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On a three-year contract, Malan linked up with Ireland in March, and had little time to waste getting a somewhat green squad prepped for a huge summer of cricket.

“Ireland tends to be a little bit of sun, cold, rain and wind and cold all rolled into one day, so not too dissimilar to a Dunedin set-up!” notes Malan with a wink. In other words, a lot of prep is by necessity done in the indoor nets.

“But it’s what you do inside of the indoor centre that matters, and that’s the narrative I have been driving here. You can adjust that mindset.

“Similarly, people here will say that grounds are small [compared to the lush expanses of England’s County grounds]. I say, ‘Well jump on a plane with me to New Zealand and I’ll show you what a small ground is!’

“Some of Ireland’s venues are definitely bigger than typical NZ grounds but again, it’s what you do inside any ground that counts, and the Irish lads have certainly been looking forward to testing themselves against the Kiwi boys.”

Putting a 300-plus score on the tins after having been sent in, with a maiden ODI century to 22-year-old Harry Tector, against the world’s number one ranked ODI team — New Zealand, would have certainly had Irish eyes smiling.

But, as with Ireland’s deciding match against India, it was ultimately another visit to heartbreak hotel for the hosts after a huge effort and tight finish.

Malahide turned on the sunshine and is regarded as having the best cricket weather on the Emerald Isle — the venue for all three ODIs, after which the teams head north to Belfast for the trio of T20is that follow next week. Belfast can be wetter, windier and the ball can shape early which may be a little less fun for the batsmen than bowlers.

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Malan’s scouting head-start on his former protégés only counted for so much, he says, as did managing to push India so close in that second T20i a fortnight ago.

“There’s been a lot of diligent work on our side to be fully prepared for another quality visiting international side.

“The short series with India highlighted again that there is some real class and quality in this Irish set-up, and it’s a nice little opportunity and challenge now for us go out and keep building on that with New Zealand, and then South Africa coming up.

“The task doesn’t get any easier, and the challenge keeps coming. But that is a real excitement for me. Playing India, New Zealand and South Africa in your first two months as an international coach — it doesn’t get more exciting than that.

"We’ll definitely know where we stand and what we have to polish/take forward as a group after that.”

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His Irish players likely didn’t have to put up with cheeky pre-series text messages from assorted BLACKCAPS looking forward to seeing Malan in his new green strip.

“Yeah, the challenge for me of this New Zealand series is not only one from a cricket perspective, but also one from a personal perspective,” Malan reflects, “with me obviously knowing these guys pretty well!

“There’s already been some fun banter in the background. But once the cricket starts, that’s where our friendship goes on pause for a period of time. I’m sure at the end of the Series we’ll be able to sit around the changing room and have a couple of beers and reminisce, highlighting this wonderful game of cricket and the friendships that you do forge.

“I’ll enjoy that for sure. But first, it’s focusing on bat versus ball and a series we want to win. Showing our skill. It’s not about reinventing the wheel over here. We’ve got a team that has performed in the past, so it’s about making that wheel turn a little bit quicker. And hopefully, we have identified some trends to try and put one or two of those New Zealand boys under pressure.

“I’m really excited about it — as a coach, and for my players, testing themselves against the best.”

Ireland v BLACKCAPS

All matches LIVE on Spark Sport

ODI 2 • this Tuesday 12 July 9.45pm NZT

ODI 3 • this Friday 15 July 9.45pm NZT

T20i 1 • Tuesday NZT 18 July 3am

T20i 2 • Thursday NZT 20 July 3am

T20i 3 • Saturday NZT 22 July 3am

Article added: Monday 11 July 2022