Australia’s head coach, Justin Langer reckons that the Test series loss against India in the 2018-19 season acted as a “wake-up call” for him in his coaching career. He joined the coaching duties in May 2018, following the infamous ball-tampering scandal that saw then skipper Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner were banned for 12 months.

Without their star batsmen, the Australian team found it difficult to score big runs despite Langer being at the helm and the men from Down Under tasted their first Test series loss to India on home turf. Virat Kohli’s men handed Australia a 2-1 defeat.

During a podcast with Australian Associated Press, Langer said, “That was a massive wake-up call and a really tough time in my life,” Langer was quoted as saying by the Australian Associated Press on a podcast. “I’ve got no doubt in 10 years’ time, I will look back on that period and it will be the making of my coaching career.”

ALSO READ: MS Dhoni Found Mowing His Lawn At His Farm House

Justin compared the series loss to the time when he was dropped as a player at the start of 2001 Ashes. Used to playing at number three, Langer was picked to open the innings with Mathew Hayden later in the series which served as a turning point for him. His cricketing career was reincarnated when he scored 16 of his 23 Test centuries in that position.

Describing the same, Langer said, “In 2001 when I got dropped from the Australian team at 31 years of age I thought that was the end. That was the making of me as a cricketer and a person. It was amazing what lessons you can learn in adversity.”

The former opener reckons that in difficult situations, ether is always opportunities to learn lessons of life and shouldn’t be squandered.

ALSO READ: Umar Akmal Feels He Is Framed For Sport-fixing By The PCB

Langer elaborated, “In adversity, like in the great crisis we are going through right now (with the coronavirus). Like the crisis of the Australian cricket team with sandpaper on the ball, in adversity never waste it. Because great lessons come from them and if you grasp them you will be a better person.”