Paarl, Oct 18 : Paarl Royals have appointed Trevor Penney as the new head coach for the SA20 2025 season, which is set to take place from January 9 to February 8, 2025.

Penney will assume the position previously held by New Zealand's Shane Bond, who will shift his attention to preparing for the IPL mega auction with the Rajasthan Royals.

"The strategic change will enable Bond to spend more time in India over the next few months as the team's bowling coach, working extensively with recently appointed head coach Rahul Dravid. Penney's appointment comes on the back of his success as head coach of the Barbados Royals' men's team in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), where he has overseen a period of consistent high performance," the franchise said in a statement.

Under his guidance, the two-time CPL champions finished as runners-up in 2022, narrowly missed out on the playoffs in 2023, and progressed through to Qualifier 2 of the 2024 season, unfortunately losing out on a place in this year's final. His leadership and coaching style has helped foster a strong team spirit and drive the Royals towards their best performances in recent years.

Sharing his excitement about the new role, Trevor Penney said: "I'm honored to take on the Head Coach role at Paarl Royals. The SA20 has become a major tournament on the global cricket calendar, and I'm excited to work with such a talented squad. Being part of the Royals family with Rajasthan Royals and Barbados Royals has been a wonderful journey, and I'm looking forward to continuing that experience in Paarl. I'm confident we can build on the successes of the last two seasons and make a strong push for the title in 2025."

Penney will inherit a team led by South African cricket icon David Miller, who has captained the Paarl Royals to back-to-back playoff appearances in the SA20. In the 2023 season, the Royals reached the semi-finals and followed that up with another playoff berth in 2024, where they put in strong performances to further cement their place as one of the tournament's most competitive teams. With Penney at the helm, the Royals will be aiming to take that next step and contend for the trophy in 2025.

Kumar Sangakkara, Royals' Director of Cricket, said: "We're delighted to have Trevor join as Head Coach of Paarl Royals. His track record with the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and with the Barbados Royals in the CPL, where he's helped in transforming the team into consistent contenders, shows the quality of coach he is. We believe his experience, combined with the leadership of David Miller and a talented squad, will help Paarl Royals continue their rise in SA20.

Meanwhile, Shane Bond, who has been fantastic with us in both the IPL and the SA20, will focus extensively on his continued role with the Rajasthan Royals and spend more time in India, overseeing the scouting and trial processes along with Rahul (Dravid) and Vikram (Rathour)."



/IANS