On April 28th, Gary Kirsten was named the head coach of Pakistan's white-ball team
04 May, 2024
PHOTO: AFP
Former Pakistan cricketer Rashid Latif has raised concerns over the Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) timing in appointing Gary Kirsten as the team's coach, stating that this move could lead to a blame game if Pakistan performs poorly in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup.
On April 28th, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made significant appointments by naming Gary Kirsten from South Africa and Jason Gillespie from Australia as head coaches for the men's national cricket team.
Latif emphasized that while Kirsten is a successful coach with a track record in Indian and franchise cricket, the timing of his appointment is crucial.
“Gary Kirsten has been a successful coach for India, and also in franchise cricket. But the timing (of his appointment) is wrong, the problem that has always arisen in Pakistan is timing. This is above my head… Next month we are going to the World Cup. On the road to the World Cup, we are playing 7 matches. The time is very short. If they lose, the board will blame Kirsten or Babar Azam. This is our tradition. I will not blame Babar or Kirsten,” Rashid Latif said.
Highlighting the urgency of clarity in team composition and leadership, the former captain stressed the importance of long-term planning.
“Today, if I know that this is my head coach, this is my captain and this is my selection committee… Momentum is like what happens in Australia, India, and England that they know these are our 12-13 certain players and this is my coach. You should have known all this 6-8 months or even a year in advance,” he concluded.
The T20 World Cup 2024 will commence on 1 June with co-hosts USA taking on neighbors Canada, while fellow hosts the West Indies will play Papua New Guinea in Guyana on the second day of group play.
The event is split up into four groups consisting of five teams, with the top two sides from each group then progressing to the Super Eight phase of the tournament ahead of the knockout semi-finals and final.
Groups for T20 World Cup 2024:
