Former Mental Conditioning and Strategic Leadership Coach of Indian Cricket Team, Paddy Upton revealed some bizarre revelations in his autobiography The Barefoot Coach. He stated that he once advised the players to have sex before the match.The South African also mentioned that his suggestion left Gary Kirsten, India’s head coach in that tournament, flabbergasted. Later, Upton apologized to Kirsten for his strange advice. Upton also mentioned that during the preparation of the 2009 Champions Trophy, he had prepared notes for Team India players in which he gave detailed information about the benefits of sex. ‘Does having sex improve your performance? Yes, it grows,’ the former conditioning coach had written in his notes as mentioned in the book.
Paddy was part of Team India's support staff during the 2011 World Cup. Their only loss in that tournament came against South Africa while a league stage game against England resulted in a thrilling tie, Sri Lanka were up against India in the summit clash which took place at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The final game was indeed nail-biting as the Lankan Lions had posted 274/6 while batting first. Moreover, India had lost veteran openers Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag cheaply. However, Gautam Gambhir and skipper MS Dhoni rose to the occasion and took India to a six-wicket triumph. Apart from working with the Indian team, Paddy Upton also served as the head coach of Pune Warriors in 2012, Rajasthan Royals for three years (2013-15), and Delhi Daredevils for two editions (2016-17) in the Indian Premier League. He also served as a head coach in Big Bash and Pakistan Super Leagues as well.
