Andy Flower

At the time of the brothers' union in Zimbabwe, one set of brothers stood out - the Flower brothers. Andy, the elder of the two made his name as one of the best batsman ever produced by Zimbabwe.

One of the best players of spin, his control over the reverse sweeps left the bowlers dumb founded. Andy debuted against Sri Lanka in the 1992 WC and made history by scoring a century on debut. Often deprived of long tours abroad thanks to Zimbabwe’s position in the world order, Andy did not get the amount of chances that would have made him a greater player than people thought. He did make the most of whatever opportunities that came his way, once looting India for 540 runs in just 2-Test matches which included a career best 232* at Nagpur in 2000. He followed it with a sublime 142 and 199* in a single Test against neighbors South Africa at Harare. ?He holds the Zimbabwean records for the most Test career runs, the highest Test batting average, and most ODI career runs.

Flower’s keeping was neat and tidy making him a versatile all-rounder in the squad. As a leader, Andy was adequate. He had two stints as a captain and was the first Zimbabwean to lead his country for a test tour of England. Andy Flower quit Zimbabwe after a difficult 2003 WC at home. He wore black arm bands all throughout the tournament as a protest against what he called ‘Death of Democracy’ in Zimbabwe. He was joined in the protest by Henry Olonga. Flower left Zimbabwe and represented Essex in the UK domestic scene where he was joined by his brother Grant. They became the first set of brothers to score a century in the same match. Andy also played for South Australia for a season in 2003-04.

Flower joined the English set-up as an assistant to Peter Moores in early 2009 and was appointed as the interim coach after Moores fell out with Kevin Pietersen. Flower’s first assignment was a disastrous one with England being rolled over for just 51 by West Indies at Jamaica. Flower was later appointed as the full time director of the England team. Under his guidance, England has peaked in all formats of the game. They won the ICC T20 championship in West Indies in 2010 while the Test team has risen to unprecedented peaks. They won the Ashes home and away and then whitewashed India to become the new World No.1 Test team.

Flower continued his good work as England transformed into a potent force. He was conferred with the 'Coach of the Year' honour in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards in 2011 following which he led the Poms to Ashes glory in 2013.

However, a reversal in the return Ashes Down Under saw Andy Flower quit the English coaching job. Having said that, Flower's remarkable contribution to English cricket cannot be undermined.

Meanwhile, speculations are rife that he has been offered a new role with the emphasis on nurturing leadership skills in young English cricketers.