The SA20 Pretoria Capitals have confirmed Jonathan Trott as their new head coach, taking over for Graham Ford, who resigned from the position last month.
Trott’s contract was extended in January to extend through the end of 2024. He has been head coach of Afghanistan since 2022. It remains unclear at this point if the 43-year-old will carry on. The SA20 is scheduled for January 2025, therefore there won’t be a major conflict between his international obligations and his work. Trott’s contract is set to expire in December, although it has not yet been confirmed if he will extend it.
After Ricky Ponting was let go, ending his seven-year relationship with the Delhi team, the Capitals are in the midst of a larger shake-up. After a challenging second season in which they won just three games and finished fifth, Pretoria decided to part ways with Ford. After winning the table in the competition’s inaugural edition in 2023, they were lost as finals.
The team’s performance at international competitions has significantly improved throughout Trott’s tenure in Afghanistan. They had only triumphed in one ICC competition, an ICC 50-over and T20, despite their skill in the shorter formats. However, in the past nine months, they had defeated Australia, England, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and Bangladesh in the 2023 ODI and 2024 T20I World Cups. In the latter, they advanced to the semifinals before falling to South Africa.
Trott might potentially be considered for the limited-overs position for England, although this is regarded as a long shot as the future of current head coach Matthew Mott will be decided in the next few days. Trott coached the Under-19 and Lions teams on the journey to earning 127 caps for England.