Gary Kirsten’s departure from Pakan’s white-ball coaching role not a great advertisement for Pakan cricket: Ramiz Raja | Cricket News
Former Pakan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja believes the unceremonious departure of Gary Kirsten will have a lasting impact on Pakan cricket, potentially leading to backlash from international coaches in the future.
“It’s not good news because Pakan needed an experienced hand like Gary Kirsten,” Raja told reporters.
“I don’t have inside information, but from a dance, it doesn’t look great to lose your coach right before the start of a tour,” he added.
Kirsten resigned as head coach of Pakan’s ODI and T20I teams a week before Pakan’s white-ball series against Australia. The PCB announced that Test coach Jason Gillespie would take over Kirsten’s role on the Australia tour.
According to media reports, there was a rift between Kirsten and the PCB after the board decided to strip coaches of selection powers. The selection committee — comprising Aleem Dar, Aaqib Javed, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, and Hassan Cheema — started selecting the playing XI.
Meanwhile, Pakan’s Test coach Gillespie stated that his role with the Pakan cricket team was now purely as a “match-day strateg.”
“I’m not a selector; I’m a match-day strateg as head coach. My focus is on the players, and I’ll let the selectors do their job. I’m getting splinters in my arse from sitting on the fence here,” he remarked ahead of Pakan’s third Test against England.
Kirsten’s stint lasted barely six months, and Raja believes the PCB will face challenges in recruiting international coaches in the future.
“Right now, there’s a hodgepodge in Pakan cricket. The selection committee is nominating the playing XI. I’m not too sure if this happens anywhere else in the world,” Raja noted.
“It’s not a straightforward situation because when someone like Gary Kirsten leaves the job, backlash is inevitable. People will speculate and want to know why he left. It’s not a great advertisement for Pakan cricket.”
“What you need is to ensure that, once you involve someone, you provide them with clarity regarding their role. I don’t know if that clarity was provided to Gary Kirsten. In the future, Pakan may face challenges in hiring international talent due to Kirsten’s resignation. It’s not going to be an easy job to attract international coaches,” he concluded.