Kirsten quits as Pakistan white-ball coach, Gillespie takes over

Staff Report

 LAHORE: Gary Kirsten has resigned as Pakistan’s white-ball coach barely six months after taking up the job, the country’s cricket board said on Monday. Test coach Jason Gillespie will fill in for Kirsten in their limited-overs tour of Australia beginning next week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on X. “…Jason Gillespie will coach the Pakistan men’s cricket team on next month’s white-ball tour of Australia after Gary Kirsten submitted his resignation, which was accepted,” the PCB said. The PCB put South African Kirsten, who coached India to the 2011 ODI World Cup victory, in charge of Pakistan’s one-day and T20 International teams in April this year. Kirsten was not present when the PCB unveiled wicketkeeper Mohmmad Rizwan as the new white-ball captain on Sunday replacing Babar Azam. Pakistan are scheduled to play three ODIs and three T20Is against Australia between Nov. 4-18 before flying to Zimbabwe for six limited-overs matches.

Kirsten, a former South Africa top-order batter, coached the side in World Cup 2024 where the Green Shirts suffered a humiliating exit after losing both of their first two matches from winning positions. The PCB made a number of changes to the composition of the men’s national selection committee during Kirsten’s short stint, reportedly limiting his powers. The South African had stepped down from the position exactly six months after his appointment. A rift had developed between the head coach and the PCB after the board decided to strip Kirsten of a say in the selection process. The authority was instead “exclusively” handed over to a selection committee, which did not include Kirsten. Kirsten was “keen” to have his “input taken into consideration” regarding the announcement of a squad and new limited-overs captain which went down to “animated discussions” with the board. However, the decision was taken when Kirsten was not in the country. Pakistan did not play a single ODI match under Kirsten’s leadership.