Matthew Hayden poised to be named coach of Glasgow-based franchise in inaugural ETPL

Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden is set to be named head coach of Glasgow Cosmic for the inaugural European T20 Premier League (ETPL). The latest franchise league is set to be played between August 26 and September 20 across the Netherlands and Ireland. 

Hayden has been no stranger to coaching across the franchise circuit in recent times. The 54-year-old recently had a stint in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the batting coach of the Gujarat Titans, where he worked alongside the likes of Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler, with the former two ending the tournament as the second and third-highest run-scorers. 

It is worth mentioning that Hayden also has experience in coaching on the international level. The former left-handed batter was the batting coach and mentor of Pakistan's senior squad between 2021 and 2022. 

According to BBC Sport, former England white-ball coach Matthew Mott will join Hayden's backroom staff as assistant coach. One of the more high-profile coaches in recent times, Mott helped the Three Lions win the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia under Buttler's captaincy, beating the Men in Green in the final in Melbourne. 

The Glasgow Cosmic are one of the six teams to compete in the inaugural ETPL, a new franchise tournament part-owned by Bollywood superstar Abhishek Bachchan. The team are owned by the Mugafi Group, an entertainment business based in India. 

The tournament is run in partnership between the cricketing boards of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands. The other franchise sides belong from the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Belfast, Dublin and Edinburgh.

The Glasgow Cosmic are poised to have a star-studded lineup for their first season in the new competition. Some of the players who have agreed to represent the Scottish outfit include South Africa's Lungi Ngidi, England all-rounder Liam Livingstone and New Zealand opener Finn Allen. The trio all played in the recently concluded IPL for the Delhi Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kolkata Knight Riders, respectively.