10 great players who played under Duncan Fletcher

Former Zimbabwean cricketer Duncan Fletcher might not be remembered as a particularly noteworthy exponent of the game but his career as a cricket coach has been far more impressive. He has been the coach of two of the biggest sides in cricket - England and India - during his illustrious career.

While he helped England reach new heights, his tenure with India was not as impressive. That said, throughout his career, he worked with some of the best players of that generation and here is a look at 10 of the greatest who played under him.

#10 Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar

During his tenure with Team India, Fletcher was in charge of some of the greatest players to have ever played the game and none stood taller than Sachin Tendulkar. However, truth be told, he managed the Little Master towards the fag end of his career and two years into his tenure, he retired.

Additionally, Tendulkar's record during that period was far from impressive as he only scored 1 century (the 100th one v Bangladesh) and averaged only 32.16 across the two formats (Tests and ODIs). Fletcher would definitely have wanted to work with Tendulkar when he was at his peak.

#9 Alec Stewart

Alec Stewart celebrates England's victory over South Africa

When Duncan Fletcher took over as England coach, Alec Stewart had just been sacked from the captaincy following a disastrous World Cup campaign at home in 1999, but over the next four years, he performed well as a batsman.

Stewart kept wickets and also formed the spine of the English middle order during those years. In a total of 92 matches (Tests and ODIs), he scored 5 centuries, 3 of them being in Tests. He also managed 24 half centuries, averaging 36.13 across the two formats of the game. He retired after the home series against South Africa, in which he scored a meagre 72 runs in 5 Tests.

#8 James Anderson

James Anderson in action

One of the all-time great fast bowlers and England's highest wicket-taker in Tests, James Anderson was handed his international debut during Duncan Fletcher's tenure, way back in 2002. Anderson played 83 matches for England across a five-year stretch and picked up 141 wickets across the three formats of the game.

He averaged 31.48 across the formats and was a vital member of England's one day side during that period. Fletcher was responsible for guiding him through the early years of international cricket, ensuring he was well on course to fulfilling his enormous potential in the years to come.

#7 Rahul Dravid

Rahul Dravid

Duncan Fletcher could only work with one of the greatest batsmen in Test cricket for little less than a year, but during his tenure, Rahul Dravid played some of the finest innings of his career, eventually retiring after the Australian tour in 2012. Right after Fletcher took over, India went to England for a 4-Test series which they lost 4-0, but Dravid stood tall with 3 centuries.

He scored 5 Test centuries in total during that period and averaged 51.04 in Test cricket throughout the duration of his stint under Fletcher. Perhaps Fletcher's experience of having coached in England came in handy for Dravid during that England tour.

#6 Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook

The former England captain is one of the greatest players to have played under the tutelage of Duncan Fletcher and although he featured for around a year under him, he shone right from the start.

During the period between March 2006 and January 2007, Cook played 14 Tests and 2 one day internationals under Fletcher. He impressed right from the start as he scored a century on debut against India at Nagpur in March 2006 and then went on to score 3 more Test hundreds, along with 3 fifties.

Cook averaged 42.96 during that period and Fletcher helped in launching the career of one of England's greatest Test players.

#5 MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni at the 2015 World Cup

The former Indian captain went through one of his best periods as a batsman when Duncan Fletcher presided as the Indian team coach. Although Fletcher's role was curtailed a bit following the disastrous tour of England in 2011, he must have worked behind the scenes with Dhoni.

Dhoni averaged 47.51 during that period across formats, higher than his career average of 45.18. In addition to that, he scored 4 centuries (2 in Tests and 2 in ODIs) and among them, the 224 he scored against Australia in the Test match at Chennai in 2013 remains his career best.

#3 Michael Vaughan

Michael Vaughan

One of England's finest batsmen of the past two decades and an iconic captain who regained the Ashes in 2005, Michael Vaughan made his debut during Fletcher's first year as national team coach.

Vaughan developed into one of the world's finest batsmen and scored 15 Test centuries at an average of 36.28 during Fletcher's tenure as England's coach. In addition to that, he also scored 30 half centuries across formats.

Vaughan was one of the most influential captains in England's cricketing history and along with Fletcher, plotted Australia's downfall in the historic 2005 Ashes in England.

#3 Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen during the 2005 Ashes

One of the greatest batsmen of the modern era, Kevin Pietersen received his England cap during Duncan Fletcher's reign. Pietersen started off with a bang in the one-day series in South Africa and went on to score 11 centuries over a period of three years, during which he averaged an exceptional 50.91 in 78 games across formats.

In Test matches, he scored 6 centuries, including the Ashes-saving 158 at the Oval in 2005, while 5 were scored in ODIs. In addition to that, Pietersen also scored 23 fifties. The career of perhaps England's greatest modern batsman took flight under Fletcher.

#2 Andrew Flintoff

Andrew Flintoff

One of Duncan Fletcher's biggest successes as a coach was turning hugely talented all-rounder Andrew Flintoff into one of the world's best cricketers. Flintoff's stock as a batsman and bowler during that period rose massively, and he played a major role in England securing the Ashes in 2005.

He scored 6346 runs for England during that period across formats and scored 8 centuries and as many as 39 half-centuries at an average of 32.88. On the other hand, as a bowler, he picked up 325 wickets at an average of 29.35 to turn into arguably the world's best all-rounder of that era.

There is absolutely no doubt that Flintoff is one of the greatest cricketers to have ever been managed by Fletcher.

#1 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli

Current Indian captain Virat Kohli blossomed into one of the world's finest batsmen following the 2011 World Cup and that rise coincided with Duncan Fletcher's tenure as the coach of the Indian team.

In the period between 2011 and 2015, Kohli scored an astonishing 27 international centuries, 10 of which came in Test matches. Moreover, he plundered a total of 8048 runs and averaged 50.93 during that period to emerge as one of the world's best batsmen.

He is, without a doubt, the player with the best record under Fletcher. That said, Fletcher's role was diluted quite a bit since the 2011 tour of England, in which India were trounced.