Kirsten talks about quitting Pak job

Express Tribune

19 hours ago

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."