PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi clarified the resignation of Jason Gillespie.©AFP
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has clarified the circumstances surrounding Jason Gillespie’s resignation as Test team head coach. Earlier this month, former Australia pacer Gillespie resigned from his post after the PCB decided not to extend the contract of high-performance coach Tim Nelson. Gillespie was also upset by the fact that the PCB also banned coaches from having a say in selection matters, a decision that led to the ouster of white-ball coach Gary Kirsten.
“Of course there are challenges. I took this job with my eyes wide open and I want to make that clear. I know, you know, Pakistan have had a lot of coaching changes in a very short period of time. That was the final straw. I think as a head coach you want clear communication with your employer and I was completely blindsided by the decision to not have a high performance coach.
Pakistan will face South Africa in two Test matches starting from Boxing Day and PCB chairman Naqvi shared his thoughts on Gillespie’s sudden departure.
“The job of the head coach is to guide the team and the job of the selection committee is to select the players,” Naqvi told Geo News.
Gillespie and Kirsten signed two-year contracts ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup, with the PCB promising to usher in a new era for Pakistan.
But when Aqib Javed was appointed senior selector and the PCB gave him full powers including team selection, the foreign coach started quarreling with the board.
Javid has also been appointed as the team’s interim coach across all three formats.
Pakistan lost the T20I series to South Africa and then turned the tables in the ODIs.
(With PTI input)
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