Queensland Cricket will welcome home a prodigal son with former captain James Hopes appointed as head coach for the next three years.
Queensland Cricket will welcome home a prodigal son with former captain James Hopes appointed as head coach for the next three years.
Hopes will take on the Brisbane Heat and Queensland Bulls coaching roles next month after agreeing to return to Brisbane following coaching stints with the Hobart Hurricanes and Tasmanian Tigers and overseas in the Indian Premier League.
Currently coaching with the Washington Freedom in Major League Cricket (MLC), Hopes said he was grateful to be able to return to his home State and thanked Cricket NSW for enabling him to exit his contract with the Sydney Sixers.
“I wrestled with this decision as I was, and still am, very appreciative of being offered the Sixers role earlier this year,’’ he said.
“However, to have the opportunity to take on the head coaching program with Queensland and live in Brisbane again was too good to miss.”
“I have been in and out of Queensland Cricket since I was 14 and along the way was privileged to play for the Bulls and the Heat. So, to be a part of that again is something very special to me and my family.”
“I’m very eager to join with the Queensland coaching staff and players when I am back and get to work preparing for the season,’’ Hopes said.
Queensland Cricket CEO Terry Svenson said it was exciting to be able to appoint a champion player who had played such a pivotal role on the field for the Bulls and Heat to his first head coaching role.
“James is the right person to guide and develop our players, especially the exciting young talent that Queensland Cricket is producing,’’ he said.
“He has proven leadership skills, has demonstrated his ability to build relationships and trust which benefits team performance, and brings extensive and up to date cricket knowledge and insights to his coaching.
“We believe our male program is building towards something special and are confident James will help to create an environment that will generate success.
“He will bring clarity, professionalism and maturity to our high-performance environment, and we are excited at what lies ahead for the Queensland Bulls and Brisbane Heat,’’ Svenson said.
Hopes, 47, epitomised a never-say-die attitude as a player during his 15 years in first class cricket.
Renowned for his work ethic, he first established a reputation as a skilful white-ball allrounder before finishing his career as a crafty and impactful practitioner with the red ball in Sheffield Shield cricket.
He finished his Bulls career with 5078 runs and 296 first class wickets, 103 of which came from his final three seasons.
He enjoyed a distinguished international playing career, representing Australia in 96 limited overs games, including 84 One Day Internationals with the bulk of those appearances coming between the 2007 and 2011 World Cups.
He also played in the IPL with Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Daredevils and served in a coaching capacity with the Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings in recent seasons.
The 49th captain of Queensland, Hopes led Queensland to back-to-back Sheffield Shield finals in
2012 and
2013, winning the title in 2012, as well as back-to-back Ryobi Cup one-day trophies in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
A foundation player and captain of the Brisbane Heat, he transitioned to coaching following his retirement in 2016, working with Daniel Vettori, Darren Lehmann and Wade Seccombe at the Heat and Bulls in a variety of roles until he linked with Tasmania in 2022.
His recent roles as a specialist skills and assistant coach saw him feature in the BBL|14 Hobart Hurricanes championship campaign.
Queensland Cricket General Manager – High Performance, Bennett King, said Hopes would start his role with Queensland next month, with the State’s official pre-season program getting underway earlier this month.
