Gary Kirsten has resigned as the coach of Hobart Hurricanes due to personal reasons after just one season with the Big Bash League club. Kirsten, who was appointed last year on a two-season contract, will be replaced by former Australia fast bowler and current Tasmania coach Adam Griffith.
“I have made a decision for a specific personal reason to resign from my role as head coach of the Hobart Hurricanes,” Kirsten said. “It is an unfortunate circumstance as I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the club.”
Kirsten, who took over the role from Damien Wright, had a promising first season with the Hurricanes, taking them to the final after they had finished in the bottom half of table in the previous three seasons. Griffith was also a part of the Hurricanes side last season, as Kirsten’s assistant.
“I have no doubt the team will once again be extremely competitive, and under Adam Griffith and George Bailey they will enjoy strong leadership,” Kirsten said. “I want to thank everyone involved on the Hurricanes Program for their support and hard work, and I wish the players well for the upcoming season.”
Griffith, who is now the head coach of both the Tasmania-based men’s teams, said he would try to assume a balanced approach to keep both sides in sync.
“It’s a big honour – even if a somewhat surprising one – to now become the BBL Hurricanes head coach, and caps off a pretty exciting last 14 months for me since joining the Tigers as their head coach in April last year,” Griffith said.
“Now that I’m head coaching the bulk of both male squads year-round in Hobart, we can really grow some effective long-term plans and ‘mix and match’ our training for all T20, limited-overs and Shield four-day formats. We don’t just want to go one better than last season’s BBL final and Sheffield Shield final – we want to be finals bound every year with the Hurricanes and Tigers.”
Source: ESPN Crickinfo