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Bangladesh has appointed Ian Pont as national team bowling coach after South African Lance Klusener rejected the post, a spokesman said Wednesday.   This announcement comes a month after Bangladesh named another Englishman, Julien Fountain, as their fielding coach as the Tigers seek to boost their performance ahead of the 2011 ICC World Cup being co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in February.

Pont, 49, who heads the MCI Academy has conducted coaching camps in USA as international coach for DreamCricket Academy over the last three years.

Picture (right):  Ian Pont at the DreamCricket Academy fast bowling camp in Hillsborough, NJ. 

"Pont has accepted our offer and is due to land in Dhaka tomorrow (Thursday)," Bangladesh's cricket board spokesman Jalal Yunus told AFP.

"Initially his contract will run up to the end of the World Cup. Then we will consider an extension," he said.  With the appointment of Pont, Bangladesh has completed a reshuffle of their coaching staff, now headed by Australian Jamie Siddons.

In additions to his summer and winter camps for DreamCricket Academy in Hillsborough, NJ and in the Bay Area, Pont conducts an annual camp in La Manga, Spain and travels out to Potchefstroom, South Africa for the International Pro Camp he helped create with North West Cricket.  The Potchefstroom camp features world-class coaches like Corrie Van Zyl, Gary Kirsten, Graeme Pollock and Jimmy Cook.

Prior to 2009, Ian has worked as ECB National Skill Sets Coach, Essex CCC for 3 years as Bowling Coach, and was Assistant Head Coach to The Netherlands, helping take the Dutch to the 2007 ICC World Cup in the West Indies.   Ian Pont has built his reputation working with first class and international players such as Darren Gough, Dale Steyn, Andre Adams, Andy Flower, Kabir Ali, Alex Tudor, Andre Nel, Andy Bichel, Maurice Chambers, Alexei Kerveeze and Graham Napier.

Ian's coaching methods offer a progressive and proven path to success.  Pont is also author of a 2006 coaching manual, "The Fast Bowler's Bible" and this year, he published his second book, "Coaching Youth Cricket."  

Ian has the second longest recorded throw of all time – a mammoth 138 yards (126.18m) or 414 feet – set in Cape Town.  He is among the few cricketers who has had professional baseball trials as a pitcher with 6 Major League Teams in 1987. Clocking speeds around 100 mph, he attracted interest from the Philadelphia Phillies. At Major League Spring Training he started as lead pitcher in a professional game for the Phillies making Ian the only modern professional cricketer to play in a professional baseball match.