Rajasthan Royals signs Shane Bond as assistant and fast bowling coach for IPL 2024

In a significant move ahead of the 2024 IPL season, the Rajasthan Royals have enlisted former New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond as their Assistant Coach and Fast Bowling Coach. Bond, renowned for his express pace, represented New Zealand in 18 Tests between 2001 and 2009 and later served as the Kiwis’ bowling coach from 2012 to 2015. He was a pivotal part of the New Zealand dressing room during the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup final. Bond also played a vital role as the bowling coach for the Mumbai Indians from 2015 to 2023, contributing to the franchise’s four IPL trophies.

His expertise in shaping talents like Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell McClenaghan, and Trent Boult is well acknowledged. Now, Bond, reuniting with Boult in the Royals’ dressing room, is set to mentor a promising group of fast bowlers within the squad. Players like Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Kuldeep Sen, Obed McCoy, KM Asif, and Kuldip Yadav are expected to benefit from Bond’s guidance.

Advertisement

Welcoming Bond, Rajasthan Royals’ Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara, expressed his enthusiasm about the valuable addition: “Shane is one of the greatest fast bowlers of modern-day cricket, and we are delighted to welcome him to the franchise. His wealth of experience and knowledge will undoubtedly help us in our pursuit of becoming a title-winning team.”

Bond, expressing his excitement about joining the Royals, said, “I’m delighted to be joining the Royals. It’s a forward-thinking franchise, and I’m excited about being part of their vision. The bowling group is a great mix of youth and experience, and it will be awesome to work alongside them.” The Royals also expressed gratitude for outgoing coach Lasith Malinga, who has moved to the Mumbai Indians as their fast bowling coach.