Australia Tuesday reappointed coach Tim Nielsen until the end of the 2013 Ashes series in England, backing him to reverse a recent slump in fortunes. Cricket Australia said Nielsen had been in charge during a "challenging" time since 2007 after a number of greats, including Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, retired, and the team lost its top Test ranking.
"Tim has been at the helm through a significant and challenging period of transition which has seen a number of once-in-a-generation global champions retire from the Australian team," chief executive James Sutherland said. "Working closely with (captain) Ricky Ponting, team leadership, national players and team management, he has played an important role leading Australia through that transition."
Australia host England for the next Ashes series from November, when they will bid to regain the trophy following defeat in 2009. Nielsen said he was excited about the opportunity to build a new generation of Australian players. "I am excited about the coming phase in Australian cricket," he said. "We have players who have come into the group over the last year or so who have found their feet at international level and more young players coming through. It is a great time to be renewing my role."
Australia are in training ahead of a packed schedule including two Tests and three one-dayers in India in October, followed by the five-Test Ashes series and seven one-dayers against England, and the one-day World Cup from February.