Arthur named Australia coach

South Africa's Mickey Arthur was Tuesday appointed Australia's new head cricket coach two months after Tim Nielsen quit, completing a sweeping revamp of the way the team is run. The 43-year-old is the first non-Australian to be handed the job and will assume the reins for the first Test against New Zealand in Brisbane on December 1, promising to bring a "fresh, unblinkered eye" to the role.
"I am honoured and privileged to have another chance to coach an international team, particularly a team of the ilk of Australia," said Arthur, who coached South Africa from 2005 until 2010. Since then he has worked with Western Australia. "I think I bring a fresh, unblinkered eye to the role after plotting against Australia when coaching South Africa and having now worked within the Australian system with the Western Warriors," he added. The announcement came hours after the Australians chased down a target of 310 in Johannesburg to beat South Africa and share their two-match Test series where Troy Cooley was in the role of interim coach. Cooley had made clear he would not be applying for the head coach job, with former Test wicketkeeper and NSW coach Steve Rixon seen by many as the frontrunner.
Tom Moody and Justin Langer were also candidates, but Arthur won the race. His appointment follows recommendations by the Argus Review, sparked by the team's humiliating 3-1 Ashes series defeat to England this year and aimed at getting Australia back to the top of world cricket.
Arthur will sit on the board of selectors with Inverarity, captain Michael Clarke, Rod Marsh and Andy Bichel, and face some immediate selection issues, most notably the future of Ricky Ponting. Arthur, who hit 6,657 first-class runs before retiring in 2001, has been contracted until 2015. This will take him through to the next ICC World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2015. Australian cricket is undergoing a transitional period following the retirement of greats such as Shane Warne, Matthew Hayden, Glenn McGrath and Adam Gilchrist.