Tag: Pakistan head coach

Former Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood has demonstrated interest in becoming the head coach of the national team as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) seeks to fill this key position.

A few days earlier, PCB had advertised the post for a new coach, along with the position of Director of High Performance Centres, on its website this week.

Aaqib Javed recently served as the interim head coach of the Pakistan cricket team. He had been performing dual roles as both selector and coach for the past six months.

While speaking to a digital platform, the current assistant coach of the Pakistan team, Azhar Mahmood, opened up on the national team’s coaching role.

“Definitely, I’m going to apply for the Pakistan team head coach role. Previously, I was working for five different leagues. The idea of working with Jason and Gary was to take the role of head coach, moving forward, “Azhar Mahmood stated.

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He further said, “I will apply, and at the end of the day, it’s on the cricket board they will decide.

“If given the opportunity, I would eagerly accept it because I have played modern T20 cricket around the world. The entire year is packed with T20 matches, and if the PCB offers me a chance, I will certainly seize it.”

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It is worth mentioning that over the past two years, the Pakistan team has had six different coaches. Abdul Rahman served as the interim head coach, while Mohammad Hafeez held the position of national team director.

During this time, Azhar Mahmood also acted as an interim head coach. Jason Gillespie was the head coach for the Test team, and Gary Kirsten took on the role of head coach for the ODI team.

READ: PCB reveals schedule of Pakistan-Bangladesh T20I series

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Sunday appointed Gary Kirsten as the white-ball head coach and Jason Gillespie as the red-ball head coach for the men’s national cricket team.

Meanwhile, Azhar Mahmood has also been confirmed as an assistant coach across all formats.

The appointments were announced by the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi during a press conference held here today.

“I extend my congratulations to Jason Gillespie and Gary Kirsten on their appointments as the red and white-ball head coaches of the Pakistan men’s cricket team, respectively,” said Mohsin Naqvi.

The appointments of Kirsten, Giillespie and Mahmood have been made for a two-year period following a recruitment process.

Kirsten will take charge as the head coach of Pakistan’s ODI and T20I sides immediately after completing his assignment in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL).

During his tenure, besides the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and other bilateral white-ball series, Kirsten will also be in charge of the side for next year’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan, ACC T20 Asia Cup 2025 and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.

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Gillespie will assume responsibilities for the ICC World Test Championship fixtures against Bangladesh (at home in August), which will be followed by Tests against England (at home in October) and South Africa (away in December) in the 2024-25 season.

“Jason’s coaching career has been marked by success both at the domestic and international levels, with a focus on player development and achieving excellence in team performance,” added Naqvi.

“Gary’s coaching career has been marked by his ability to instill a winning mentality, develop young talent, and achieve success at the highest levels of the game, making him one of the most respected and sought-after coaches in cricket.

“In this background, I have every confidence that their expertise will guide our players to reach new heights, aligning with their inherent talent and the expectations of our passionate fans.

“These high-quality appointments also present a remarkable opportunity for our players to glean insights from these seasoned professionals, refining their skills and fortifying their cricketing acumen.

“The PCB is unwavering in its commitment to furnish the national team with top-tier resources and facilities, fostering an environment conducive to unlocking their full potential and consistently delivering stellar performances.”

READ: Babar, Shaheen aid Pakistan to level series against New Zealand

Pakistan men’s cricket team’s head coach Grant Bradburn is aiming for more improvement, specifically in the middle overs ahead of the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup in India.

Bradburn, while talking to the media on the sidelines of the national team’s training camp for the ODI series against Afghanistan and the Asia Cup spoke about the team’s preparation.

“Cricket is changing rapidly, it’s a dynamic high-scoring game and we are planning according to that, as we want to be at the front and centre at the style of that brand of cricket,” said Grant Bradburn.

“A glimpse of that was seen in the series against New Zealand,” he added.

He emphasized the importance of scoring runs and taking wickets in the middle overs in ODI cricket.

“We are very clear about the fact that we need to score faster in the middle overs. We haven’t been as successful in the middle overs in ODIs as we should have been.

“Not only with the bat but with the ball too, we need to pick more wickets in the middle phase of the innings.

“You saw the way the boys played in Sri Lanka during the Test series. They are looking to play in an aggressive style, and that’s exactly what we demand.

Grant Bradburn also shed light on the dynamics of his relationship with the team director Mickey Arthur.

“Mickey Arthur and I are very good coaching associates and friends for a very long time. We are communicating daily, and he is part of the plan to guide this team in a new direction,” Bradburn added.

“We are looking forward to him [Mickey Arthur] joining us on August 23rd [in Sri Lanka], he will be with us through to the match against India in Kandy. He will later join us for the World Cup in India.”

The head coach also stressed the team is solely focused on the series against Afghanistan.

“We are just thinking about the next week and the next game. The first match against Afghanistan will be very crucial as they are a tough side,” Grant Bradburn said.

Pakistan team is scheduled to play a three-match ODI series against Afghanistan in Sri Lanka on August 22, 24 and 26. The first two ODI will take place in Hambantota, while the third game will be played in Colombo.

The upcoming series is the first bilateral ODI series between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Before that, they played only four ODIs and Pakistan remained unbeaten in all.

Afterwards, the Pakistan team will Pakistan will face Nepal in the curtain raiser of the Asia Cup, starting on August 30 at Multan Cricket Stadium.

READ: Wahab Riaz retires from international cricket

LAHORE: Newly appointed Pakistan head coach Abdul Rehman believes that his side is perfectly balanced and has all the bases covered to face the spin challenge from Afghanistan in the upcoming T20I series between the two teams in Sharjah.

In his first media interaction on Tuesday after being named as the national team’s head coach for the upcoming three T20Is, Rehman thanked Pakistan Cricket Board management and its chair Najam Sethi for giving him the opportunity.

“It’s an honour for me to be the head coach of Pakistan. It’s a great opportunity for me, I will try to give the best of my capabilities and create a difference in this series ” said Rehaman.

Rehman, who has a vast coaching experience under his belt in domestic cricket, including Pakistan Super League, stated he was not under any kind of pressure since he worked with almost every player of the squad on different occasions.

“We have some really good youngsters in our squad and all of these are coming after performing in the PSL so I think we have the all bases covered” he added.

Talking about his position in the interim coaching setup where he is joined by former Pakistan stars Umar Gul and Mohammad Yousuf as bowling and batting coaches respectively, Rehman said, “No one will be dictating anyone. We have to work together and move along collectively”

Moreover, head coach Rehman believed that the opposition had some really good spinners at their disposal but the well-balanced Pakistan side would be able to counter them effectively.

“We have a combination of youngsters and seniors. And all of them have faced Afghanistan players in the PSL.”

“Their (Afghanistan’s) spin bowling is quite strong, although their batting is not as strong as their bowling. But we have a talented batting lineup and a well-balanced team to face their spinners”

It may be noted here that Pakistan selected a young-looking team to play three T20Is against Afghanistan under the captaincy of Shadab Khan as the key players, including all-format captain Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi were rested.

The three T20Is will be staged in Sharjah on March 24, 26 and 27.

Pakistan Squad: Shadab Khan (c), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan.

Reserves: Abrar Ahmed, Haseebullah, Usama Mir

READ: Afghanistan recall ex-captain Nabi for T20I series against Pakistan