Gary Kirsten resigns as Pakistan’s white-ball coach ahead of Australia series
Former South Africa cricketer Gary Kirsten has resigned as Pakistan’s white-ball coach with immediate effect. Kirsten, who was appointed by the PCB on a 2-year contract in April 2024, managed to last barely 6 months in the role, and has stepped down hardly a week before Pakistan’s ODI series against Australia.
According to reports, rifts had been developing between Pakistan coaches Kirsten and Jason Gillespie due to which the PCB decided to strip them off selection powers, with that authority exclusively the preserve of a selection committee which they would no longer be a part of.
Kirsten did not make a public statement, but was understood to be disappointed with the recent developments. According to reports, the delay in announcing the squad for Australia series and new limited-overs captain was due to the discussions within the board, with Kirsten keen to have his input taken into consideration. Ultimately, when PCB announced the new white-ball captain to be Mohammad Rizwan, Kirsten had already left the country.
The coaches have felt sidelined by the rise in influence of the current selection committee. After Pakistan lost the first Test against England, a new selection panel was announced. Aaqib Javed, Aleem Dar, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq and Hassan Cheema were on it, while the coaches and captain were taken off.
The departure of Kirsten means that he wasn’t able to coach the Pakistan team for even a single ODI match, which is the format where achieved his greatest coaching success.
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