PCB appoints Kirsten, Gillespie as white-ball, red-ball coaches

LAHORE
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday confirmed the appointment of former South African Gary Kirsten and former Australian quick Jason Gillespie as white-ball and red ball cricket coaches respectively of the Pakistan Men’s cricket teams for a period of two years.
“Former Pakistan all-rounder Azher Mehmood has been assigned as assistant coach in all three formats for the period,” the PCB Chairman said, adding that a transparent recruitment process had been adopted for the appointment of the coaching staff.
Mohsin Naqvi said that the white-ball cricket coach Gary Kirsten will join the team in England at the end of a foreign cricket league where he is the head coach of a franchise. Kirsten will coach Pakistan in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024, all white-ball bilateral series, the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, ACC T20 Cup 2025 and ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.
He said Jason Gillespie will join the team later as Pakistan did not have any Test cricket commitments.
To a query, Naqvi said the best available foreign coaches have been hired by the PCB, adding that the foreign coaches bring with them more to offer to the players than local coaches. He expressed hope that the Pakistan cricketers will gain from the cricketing acumen and coaching expertise of these coaches who have vast experience of international cricket and coaching teams. Mohsin Naqvi said that local coaches were behind their foreign counterparts in use of technology and science.
“The players will also be able to improve their language skills in the presence of a foreign coach,” the BCP Chairman quipped when asked about Pakistani players incapacity to communicate in English.
He said that a GPS was made available immediately to the team’s coaching staff, adding that the PCB was bound to provide the cricketers with all kinds of facilities instead of keeping the money locked in the bank lockers.
Mohsin Naqvi reiterated his commitment to back his players provided they all go down fighting for the glory of the team and the country, adding that there was no room for lethargy in the team.
On instability in the affairs of the PCB, Naqvi said that stability in all matters of the PCB was his ideal, adding that the current political government was stable and did not find anything to worry about.
On women cricket, Mohsin Naqvi said that the PCB was in the hunt for a foreign head coach for the Pakistan women cricket team, adding that PCB’s Director International Cricket Usman Wahla is looking for the right person.
On Ihsanullah, he said he had constituted a three-member medical panel to submit its report whether his injury was mishandled, adding that the PCB will look after all its players in men and women cricket.
On injuries to Shawaal Zulfiqar and other women cricketers, the PCB Chief said that he had referred her to the same medical panel as well, however, added that two women cricketers violated the security protocols and left the team hotel in a car in Karachi which resulted in an accident. He said though the PCB is looking after the medical needs of Ghulam Fatima but there was a need for security protocols.
“On the recommendation of the Punjab Chief Secretary, a female SSP has been appointed to look after the security needs of the team and implement protocols like the Men’s cricket team,” the PCB Chairman added.
Mohsin Naqvi also announced that the PCB will voluntarily provide medical care to the three critically injured boys in Qalat, Quetta, adding that nine cricketers had been injured while protecting themselves from a rainstorm against a wall.