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Follow UsWho is Ryan ten Doeschate? Chances are that you may have heard of him for his credentials as a player, but do you know what he brings to the table as a coach? And the sort of influence he has had on teammates and teams? Clearly, Gautam Gambhir knows something that we don't and thus pushed for him to be his assistant coach.
In the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Gautam Gambhir and Abhishek Nayar worked well together and brought immediate success as the franchise lifted its first title in 10 years. Gambhir had no hesitation in poaching Nayar from KKR.
The Dutch all-rounder was no different, except Gambhir also knew ten Doeschate as a player from their time together during KKR’s successful period when they won two titles in three years.
In fact, Gambhir termed ten Doeschate the “greatest team man” he has ever played with and someone for whom he would take a bullet. That sentiment is certainly echoed in the cricket community.
And who better to speak about what ten Doeschate brings to the table than someone who has played with and under him?
Empathy for players
Meet Fred Klaassen, a tall, lanky left-arm pacer who looks up to Trent Boult. He has been in and out of the Dutch side due to either county commitments or injuries. He has played 11 T20Is with ten Doeschate and plenty of matches against him in England, and that relationship further blossomed when the duo were reunited at Kent.
“Being lucky enough to play with someone of Tendo’s [Ryan ten Doeschate] calibre early in my career will be something I’m always grateful for,” Klaassen said in a chat with Cricket.com.
“It was quite obvious the quality that he possessed as a player, but his competitiveness stood out to me from the start. Having him on our side lifted everyone else’s ability. He would always go after the big players in the opposition. If he was in the XI, it felt like we could defeat anyone.
“Although his competitiveness was aggressive in his style of play, his emotions were always calm, and this made him a quality leader. You truly got to experience his competitiveness when playing against him, for me, in the Vitality Blast. His aggressive style of play was emulated in his running between the wickets and his fielding quality.
“It didn’t matter that we were international teammates when coming up against him; he was as tough a component as anyone. These attributes were also portrayed in his coaching style. His understanding of the game is second to none, and having someone in the coaching staff that you can trust to the extent of Tendo’s level is priceless.”
Klaassen also attested to ten Doeschate’s ‘knowledge’, and also added that his ability to have empathy for the players stood out during his time as his coaching stint at Kent.
“As the quality all-rounder that he was, his understanding of the three facets of the game were integral,” Klaassen said.
“There’s something refreshing about being coached by someone you’ve played with, I think because it hasn’t been so long since he’s experienced the game as a player, his understanding and empathy as a coach on how difficult the game can be is really comforting as a player.”
A missing link in every coaching staff
It is clear that Gambhir sees ten Doeschate as a perfect team man — someone who would put the team over himself and will do anything to take the team forward. That is something he showcased as a player, and it would not be wrong to assume that it would rub off on his coaching style as well.
Gambhir has experienced that first-hand as captain of KKR, and he is not the only one.
Former Netherlands skipper Jeroen Smits, under whom the Dutch pulled off a heist against England at Lord’s in the 2009 T20 World Cup, has seen ten Doeschate from close quarters and does not doubt that this is just the beginning of a successful stint as a coach for the 44-year-old.
“Ryan has been, without any doubt, by far the most professional and hardworking player I have ever played with,” Smits told Cricket.com about ten Doeschate’s playing days.
“In his first years the players in the Dutch team were primarily amateurs and had to take holidays to play at World Cups. Ryan was always busy to improve his game. Where most Dutch players were happy with an afternoon off, Ryan would easily plan an extra training session. When we returned from an afternoon of shopping, golfing or resting by the pool, he was the one who went to the gym.
“His fitness level was unprecedented, and he took optimal care of his body and was, therefore, rarely injured. His physical fitness and excellence in preparation also ensured that, mentally, he had a big advantage over the rest. He was also the man who made us realise what it took to perform at the top level.”
Three years ago, former Netherlands head coach Ryan Campbell said that he would only keep the seat warm until ten Doechate took over the role. While Cook has done a remarkable job since Campbell’s exit, is ten Doeschate next in line?
Smits feels Ten Doeschate will be a perfect fit for the national side.
“I think the Netherlands currently has coaches who are among the top level in the world and can be very happy with their coaching staff.
“But sure, if there comes an opportunity in the future ten Doeschate would be a perfect fit. One person can`t make the difference, you need a complete staff that needs to work well together. I am 100% convinced Tendo can be a missing link in every coaching staff. Coaching and playing are different, I think. As a player you can have an immediate impact on your own performance. As a coach, that`s harder to achieve.”
A true voice in the dressing room
Captain, Leader, Legend.
If that’s not flashed across the stands at the County Cricket Ground in Chelmsford yet, it’s perhaps time to do so. In 2015, Essex remained in Division Two after finishing 64 points short of Surrey, the then-leaders. A change was required if they had to progress up the ladder, and James Foster was relieved from his duties as the captain.
With Chris Silverwood in charge, the side had to find a way to move up the division, and that’s when they named 36-year-old ten Doeschate their captain.
Over the next year, they not only found themselves in the promised land, ‘Division One’, but they also started building something that would redefine Essex’s stature at the top level. During this run, the club’s head coach and Director of Cricket, Anthony McGrath, ran into the veteran.
So, what led to the club handing the captaincy to a 36-year-old overseas? What qualities set ten Doeshate apart from other leadership candidates?
“He's [Ryan ten Doeschate] one of the people who, as I say, leads from the front, but he demands respect as well, the way he goes about, not just cricket, but how he treats people. He's very smart. He's a good reader of the game. So I think it was just an inevitable step that he'd go up and be captain,” McGrath said in an exclusive chat with Cricket.com.
“His [Ryan] performance, you know, he's quite selfless in how he goes about the game, he thinks about other people. So all the attributes are really important as a skipper. But I think the most important thing is while he was very studious in the way he thought about the game, he was very smart, as I said. So, I think he was just the outstanding candidate at that juncture in time.”
What started as just another gig for ten Doeschate turned out to be one of Essex's most successful periods.
He will inspire the next generation of Indian stars
It was always natural for someone with ten Doeschate's innate leadership traits to take up coaching, like duck to water. So when he quit cricket in 2021, Kent did not waste any time, naming him as the club’s batting coach.
A year later, he was offered an extravagant gig as KKR’s fielding coach. It was during that stint with the Knights that ten Doeschate’s influence as a coach started to grow multi-fold.
Not only was he part of the IPL 2024-winning team, he was later appointed to the Los Angeles Knight Riders (LAKR) backroom staff in Major League Cricket, which ultimately helped him earn that gig as India’s assistant coach.
McGrath believes that ten Doeschate's experience worldwide and his ability to ‘dip a toe’ into different competitions was the biggest difference.
“He's [Ryan ten Doeschate] got experience at different levels. So he went to Kent, and he's been in the IPL now, so I think he's kind of dipped his toe into different competitions, different experiences. He's been over in America [Los Angeles Knight Riders] as well, so he's gaining all this experience, and I'm sure if he wants to be a very, very good head coach, but I mean, what an opportunity now to be assistant coach of India,” McGrath said.
“That's as good as it gets; working closer to the top players, he's only going to gain more experience, and I'm sure in time, he will become a head coach because he's got everything you need to be a successful head coach.”
The Dutch all-rounder, though, will have a drastically different role to play in the Indian dressing room. There, he will not only have to work with titans like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli but also will have to play a key role in helping the likes of Riyan Parag, Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Ravi Bishnoi develop into future superstars.
So, what will ten Doeschate, the assistant coach, bring to the table?
“I think he's ten Doeschate] someone who reads people very well. He can get on with someone who's 18 years old and similarly up to 38. I think he's got that flexibility, he's got the smart about, you know, dealing with people, what gets the best out of people,” McGrath applauded the all-rounder.
“But also, you know, he's up with the current curve of the game. He's working at the highest level with KKR, he's worked in county cricket, he's done stuff with international teams. So he really is at the forefront of where cricket's going. So I think he'll be able to adapt his style, no matter what the age of the player, and inspire the next generation of Indian players coming through.”
That’s Ryan ten Doeschate, the coach, and you will read a lot about him sooner rather than later.
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