Tino Best, the former fiery Barbados and West Indies fast bowler, has started a new role as the strength and conditioning coach of the Barbados Pride senior men’s cricket team.
The 45-year-old told The Nation in an exclusive interview that he had been with the squad for a few weeks and was based at Kensington Oval. He said he was enjoying his new role and was happy to be giving back and making a meaningful contribution to the development of young players.
Best played 25 Test matches, 26 One-Day Internationals and six T20Is for the West Indies between 2003 and 2014. He played 121 first-class matches and ranks among Barbados’ most successful fast bowlers. During his professional career, he took more than 500 wickets.
“It’s a dream opportunity. I remember back in the day when I used to ‘run’ the warm-ups in the Barbados team. This was before we had a strength and conditioning or fitness coach. Captain Courtney Browne said to me, ‘This looks good on you. Make sure you take this up seriously when you retire,’” Best said.
“I took his advice and pursued it, and I’m here. It is something I always wanted to do, and I’m grateful to Cricket West Indies for giving me this opportunity to work with the Barbados Pride franchise structure,” Best said. (PS)