Kirsten talks about quitting Pak job

Former South Africa cricketer and renowned coach Gary Kirsten has opened up about the reasons behind his premature departure as Pakistan's white-ball coach, citing a lack of authority and internal power struggles within the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Speaking on the Wisden Cricket Patreon Podcast, Kirsten detailed how his role was undermined by being excluded from the team selection process, which ultimately made it difficult for him to make a meaningful impact.
"It was a tumultuous few months. I realised quite quickly I wasn't going to have much of an influence. Once I was taken off selection and asked to take a team and not be able to shape the team, it became very difficult as a coach then to have any sort of positive influence on the group," Kirsten said.
Kirsten took over as Pakistan's white-ball coach in April 2024, alongside Jason Gillespie, who was appointed the Test coach.
However, both saw their tenures cut short. Kirsten stepped down six months into the role, shortly after the PCB announced squads for the ODI and T20I tours of Australia and Zimbabwe—without involving him or Gillespie in the selection process.
Gillespie, too, resigned ahead of the South Africa Test series in December, reportedly disillusioned after the board parted ways with high-performance coach Tim Nielsen. He later admitted the experience left a "sour taste" in his coaching career.
Despite the frustrating experience, Kirsten hasn't ruled out returning to coach Pakistan in the future—under the right conditions.
He also hinted that external interference and a lack of cricketing autonomy were at the heart of the issues.
"If I got invited back to Pakistan tomorrow, I would go, but I would want to go for the players, and I would want to go under the right circumstances," he said.
"Cricket teams need to be run by cricket people. When that's not happening and when there's a lot of noise from the outside that's very influential noise, it's very difficult for leaders within the team to walk a journey that you feel like you need to walk in order to take this team to where it needs to go.
"If I were invited back tomorrow, I would go—but only for the players and under the right circumstances," he said. "I'm too old now to be dealing with other agendas.
I just want to coach a cricket team and work with the players. I love the Pakistan players — they're great guys. In my short time with them, I could feel the immense pressure they carry. When they lose, it's hectic for them, and they really feel that."
Following Kirsten's resignation, former pacer Aaqib Javed served as the interim head coach. He has now been replaced by New Zealand's Mike Hesson, who has taken charge of Pakistan's white-ball teams. As of now, the red-ball coaching position remains vacant.
Kirsten concluded by emphasising that success with any talented group depends on minimal interference.
"I'm too old now to be dealing with other agendas, I just want to coach a cricket team, work with the players — I love the Pakistan players, they're great guys. I had a very short period of time with them and I feel for them. More than any other team in the world, they feel the pressure of performance massively, when they lose it's hectic for them and they feel that.
"But they're professional cricketers and I'm a professional cricket coach. When we get into that environment, there are generally certain things you do to help a team be the best that they can be, and when there's no interference, you go down the road, and if it's a talented group of guys, you're generally going to have success."

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Express Tribune

3 days ago

• Express Tribune

Pakistan set for Bangladesh T20I tour in July: report

The Pakistan men's cricket team will tour Bangladesh in July for a three-match T20I series, with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) expected to officially confirm the schedule next week, according to reports. The BCB has reportedly shared a proposed itinerary with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), outlining fixtures on 20, 22 and 24 July. All matches are set to be held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur, Dhaka. This bilateral series falls outside the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Future Tours Programme (FTP) and was arranged following high-level discussions between PCB and BCB officials on the sidelines of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, jointly hosted by Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. Bangladesh, currently led by Litton Das, recently completed a reciprocal tour of Pakistan where they were swept 3–0 in a T20I series. That campaign marked the first assignment for Pakistan's new white-ball head coach Mike Hesson and T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha. Following their matches in Bangladesh, Pakistan will travel to the West Indies for another white-ball assignment. A three-match T20I series is scheduled to begin on 31 July in the United States. Although an ODI leg is tentatively planned, reports suggest that the PCB and Cricket West Indies (CWI) are in talks to replace it with additional T20Is. The change would allow both teams to focus on upcoming T20 tournaments, including the 2025 ACC Men's Asia Cup and the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. As it stands, the T20Is against the West Indies are scheduled for 31 July, 2 August and 3 August. The proposed ODI series is slated to be held at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad on 8, 10 and 12 August, pending final confirmation. Further details on both tours, including any changes to the fixture list, are expected in the coming weeks.

Business Recorder

4 days ago

• Business Recorder

Jasprit Bumrah told BCCI he did not want Test captaincy due to workload concerns

Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah said he told India's cricket board (BCCI) that he did not want to be considered for the Test captaincy as his workload has to be carefully managed due to his back problems. The BCCI picked top-order batter Shubman Gill as captain following Rohit Sharma's decision to quit the Test format last month, with chief selector Ajit Agarkar saying they could not risk burdening Bumrah with a leadership role. Gill will lead the side in a five-Test series against England starting in Leeds on Friday. 'I have discussed about my workloads going forward in a five-Test match series, I've spoken to the people who have managed my back, I've spoken to the surgeon as well,' Bumrah told Sky Sports on Tuesday. 'I came to the conclusion that I have to be a little more smart, so I called the BCCI and said I don't want to be looked at in a leadership role.' Bumrah had captained the side in Rohit's absence in the first two matches of a five-Test series in Australia at the end of last year. But the 31-year-old was then sidelined for three months after sustaining a stress-related back injury during the series finale in Sydney in January. Bumrah, who was named the ICC men's cricketer of the year in 2024, has suffered multiple back injuries throughout his career, including one that forced him to have surgery in 2023. India tell Reddy to be ready for bigger bowling workload in England He said the captaincy should not fall to someone who has to manage their workload in a five-Test series. 'I had to say no as it's not fair for the team as well,' he added. 'It's not fair to the team if in a five-Test series, three matches somebody else is leading and two matches somebody else is leading. 'I always wanted to put the team first.'

Express Tribune

5 days ago

• Express Tribune

74 Pak players registered for BBL 15

Pakistan's T20I captain Salman Ali Agha, Saim Ayub and others are registered for the draft. Photo: AFP/File Pakistan's T20I captain Salman Ali Agha is among the 74 Pakistani male cricketers who have signed up for the Big Bash League (BBL) 15 Draft, as announced by Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday. The draft, scheduled for June 19, will also include 11 Pakistani women cricketers competing for spots in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL), showcasing a growing interest and presence of Pakistani talent in Australia's premier T20 competitions. Joining Salman in the men's draft are explosive opener Mohammad Haris and mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed, both of whom have impressed with their recent performances at the domestic and international levels. These names add to an already star-studded list of Pakistani players previously registered for the BBL 15 Draft, including pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi, wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan, leg-spinner Shadab Khan, fast bowler Haris Rauf, spinner Usama Mir and pacer Mohammad Hasnain. Meanwhile, Pakistan's star batter Babar Azam has already been secured by the Sydney Sixers as one of the 15 pre-signed marquee players for the upcoming season across both the men's and women's competitions. The BBL 15 draft will feature over 600 overseas players, making it one of the most competitive drafts in recent years. The men's draft includes players from England (178), the West Indies (42), Sri Lanka (13), and even one from India. The women's draft pool is headlined by players from England (46), India (15), New Zealand (15) and Pakistan (11). For the unversed, Brisbane Heat will have the first pick in the men's draft, giving them the opportunity to lead selections from this elite pool of global talent. Mega-money Babar Former Pakistan cricket team captain Babar Azam has joined the list of the highest-paid players in Australia's Big Bash League (BBL) after signing with the Sydney Sixers for a fee higher than the Platinum category base price. This will be Babar's first appearance in the BBL and the Sixers have secured his services for the upcoming season. Details of the agreement between Babar and the franchise have also emerged. According to reports, the Sixers picked Babar in the Platinum category and offered him a pre-signing deal with a salary exceeding the base price. The base price for Platinum category players is around PKR 7.75 crore, but sources claim Babar's deal is worth nearly PKR 10 crore, making him one of the highest-paid signings in BBL. With over 10,000 international runs across formats, the 30-year-old has firmly established himself as one of the game's most prolific and consistent performers. As per BBL regulations, each team is permitted to pre-sign one overseas player ahead of the official BBL 15 draft, scheduled for Thursday, June 19. List of Pakistan players Asif Afridi, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Muhammad Akhlaq, Ammad Butt, Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Hasan Ali, Muhammad Ali, Nauman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Umar Amin, Ali Asfand, Azan Awais, Saim Ayub, Danish Aziz, Tahir Baig, Ahmed Daniyal, Sahibzada Farhan, Zafar Gohar, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Huzaifa, Muhammad Imran Jr, Aamer Jamal, Azam Khan, Haseebullah Khan, Ihsanullah Khan, Jahandad Khan, Mubasir Khan, Sajid Khan, Shadab Khan, Shahzaib Khan, Usman Khan, Yasir Khan, Zaman Khan, Irfan Khan Niazi, Shan Masood, Zahid Mehmood, Arafat Minhas, Usama Mir, Mehran Mumtaz, Sufiyan Muqeem, Khawaja Nafay, Hasan Nawaz, Rohail Nazir, Muhammad Nawaz, Usman Qadir, Momin Qamar, Haris Rauf, Ali Raza, Mohammad Rizwan, Abdul Samad, Ali Shafiq, Abdullah Shafique, Hunain Shah, Khushdil Shah, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Shahzad, Saud Shakeel, Hussain Talat, Usman Tariq, Siraj Uddin, Imam-ul-Haq, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Muhammad Wasim, Arif Yaqoob, Zeeshan Zameer, Muhammad Zeeshan.