Mike Hussey set for Welsh Fire men's job after Gary Kirsten departure

Kirsten was let go after Welsh Fire went through the 2022 campaign without winning a game

Former Australia batter Mike Hussey is set to be Welsh Fire's new men's head coach.

His arrival follows the departure of Gary Kirsten, who was let go after two poor campaigns in charge.

The move strengthens Hussey's relationship with English cricket, which dates back to a stint two decades ago with Northamptonshire as an overseas player. 

More recently – and pertinently – he was on Matthew Mott's coaching staff as England won the T20 World Cup in the autumn.

His compatriot, David Saker, was also linked with the job, which has officially been vacant since Kirsten's exit was announced in December.

But it never seemed likely that his relationship with The Hundred would extend into a third year, with Fire going through the 2022 competition winless and with a 100 per cent losing record. They finished rock-bottom, only one spot worse off than their seventh-place finish in 2021.

The women's team have fared similarly poorly, finishing eighth in both years. They lost Mott as their head coach shortly before the start of the 2022 edition when he took the England job; he was replaced by Gareth Breese.

^{Welsh Fire's men's team didn't win a game in 2022 (Harry Trump/Getty Images)}

Hussey also has plenty of Indian Premier League experience, spending several years as a player with Chennai Super Kings and another with Mumbai Indians. He has also worked with Chennai in a coaching capacity.

Welsh Fire are expected to be busy in the pre-tournament draft; little that they tried in 2022 came off, with only Ben Duckett scoring more than 120 runs across the competition. Jonny Bairstow, who was set to captain when available and was key to their hopes, withdrew shortly before the start. Jake Ball was the only bowler to pick up more than four wickets in a miserable campaign.

Jacob Bethell, the Warwickshire allrounder, featured just twice after being picked up on the back of an impressive Under-19 World Cup.

His lack of cricket frustrated Mark Robinson, his county head coach, who spoke to The Cricketer about his desire to see greater flexibility between The Hundred and Royal London Cup to ensure those not involved weren't going through August without playing any cricket. It is expected that those concerns will give way to a more fluid system in 2023.

"They should be playing," he said. "They need to be playing cricket. Rules are rules, but everybody at the end of a season has a chance to address what's worked in a season and what rules need changing. Players need to play, especially at that age."

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