By surname

John Michael (Mickey) Arthur (born May 17, 1968) was a coach of the South African National Cricket team. Born in Johannesburg, Gauteng, he has played for both Griqualand West and Orange Free State). Mickey Arthur was one of South Africa’s longest-serving and most successful coaches. In 2008, along with the national team, he created history when the Proteas beat both England and Australia on their own turf.

Under Mickey Arthur the team took a journey to the number one ranking in both ODI and Test cricket. Since the world ranking system was introduced to international cricket, Australia has been the only other team to achieve this. But behind the scenes Arthur’s uncompromising approach to administrators and refusal to be dictated to by men he believed were ‘out of touch’, began to count against him.

In 2009, Arthur ‘resigned’, never elaborating on the reasons for his untimely dismissal until the release of his biography Taking the Mickey.